Brideswell Sewers
by sych77
Summary: The rules: a virus will always spread. And just when you think it can't get any worse, that demon from your nightmare will pay a visit. COMPLETE (finally)
1. Glitch

         Brideswell Sewers.

Note: Hello! This is my first ever fanfic, so ANY advice is welcome. Please review my story. First things first, I love RE, but I have only played RE0 and RE so some details might be a bit off… still, bear with me PLEASE! Secondly, I from a random country called New Zealand- (don't even bother trying to find it in an atlas, it probably won't be there… I swear it's that small) and our laws are a little different I think. At fifteen we can get our learner's drivers license but it takes a couple of years and more exams to get the full. This is relevant, honestly…

Disclaimer: I in no way own any of Resident Evil, the video games or books by SD Perry (incidentally, where do you find those books on the net to order? They aren't here in NZ… sob).

            Celia Rees book "The Vanished" gave me a couple of ideas, but it is about ghosts rather than mutations and I like to think the story line is completely different.

            Anyway, enough of this crusticus… on with the story… (And please review!)

****

**Chapter One: Glitch**

Dressed completely in black, Albert Wesker examined the room he was in. It appeared to be a study of some kind, furnished with large wall unit bookcases, stacked full of literature, and polished wooden desks with ornate chairs of old-fashioned design. It spoke of riches and prosperity, despite being dimly lit by a solitary table lamp in the corner. In fact, the whole has was dark, of 1800s design; furniture, architecture and colouring all dark and mysterious.

            But still Wesker wore his customary black sunglasses. Once before, in a meeting like the one about to start now, a colleague had insisted on the removal of the said shades. After complying, Wesker was begged to put them back on. At the memory of the incident, Wesker's eyes flashed strangely red behind the shades… but surely, it must've been a trick of the light…

            Presently, a short bald man burst into the room. He wore the neat clothes of a butler and, despite being obviously out of breath, carried himself with an air of dignity and composure.

            "Mr. Wesker," the butler said disdainfully, " they are waiting for you down in the conference room. The meeting is about to commence. This way."

            Without waiting for a reply, the short man turned and walked hurriedly down the corridor. Wesker followed at a more leisurely pace, taking time to appreciate the lavish carpets and detailed portraits which hung on the walls of the hall. Whoever owned this house was certainly wealthy.

            The butler stopped and ushered Wesker through a doorway on the right. Surprisingly, this room didn't follow the 1800 themed décor. Instead, it had white walls and steel tables, which gave the room an office-like quality. But unlike an office, this room too was poorly lit, giving those sitting at the tables a threatening persona, as the faces were obscured in the darkness.  A bigger man at the back appeared to be in charge, judging by the way those surrounding him seemed eager to leave.

            "Thank you, Williams," said the big man in a very deep voice. The butler nodded, and exited the room, closing the door firmly behind him. Members of the meeting cringed as the door shut, as if they felt they would never be able to leave the meeting now that door was closed.

            "Sit," the deep voice continued, oblivious to the shudder which had passed through the meeting. He gestured to a seat. Wesker sat, pondering how the meeting reminded him of a scene from an action/ thriller movie.

            "Good work in Raccoon City, Mr. Wesker, but there have been…" the voice hesitated over the word, "_complications_."

            Everybody straightened in his or her chairs, but the others kept silent. "Complications?" Wesker inquired. "What kind of complications?"

            "The T virus has spread to the neighbouring town of Brideswell. From there the virus can easily spread through the country. That would be… inconvenient as far as our plans are concerned."

            Wesker felt the big man's eyes on him. Trying to appear only mildly interested but still alert, he asked, "What do you propose we do?"

            "We?" the big man laughed. "No Mr. Wesker, not 'we'. YOU."

Wesker sighed. _No surprises there._

Miles away, in the sleepy town of Brideswell, two teenagers sat on the lawn of Brideswell High School, chatting animatedly.

            "That English exam so totally sucked!" the blonde one exclaimed. "I had no idea what was going on!"  
  


            "I know," her friend agreed. "It was the most boring, confusing and absolute utter _waste_ of two and a half hours!"

            "Hey Rosanna! Sena!" a voice called from behind. The two girls turned as a boy ran up.

            "Oh, hi Ian," said the girl with the blond hair. "Happy 17th Birthday."

            The tall blonde boy smiled. "Thanks Sena. Thought you'd forgotten. Rosanna?" He turned to the girl beside him. "Are you doing anything tonight?"

            She considered. "No," she replied, shaking her glossy auburn hair, "I think I'm free."

            "Cool. "Cos I have to pick up my friend from out of town and as you're the only one with a full license…" Ian trailed off, grinning hopefully at Rosanna.

            "Okay," she said, pretending to pout, " but you're gonna Have to get your drivers before Christmas." Ian nodded fervently. "Sena," she continued, "do you want to come?"

            "Sure. I'd just be studying geography otherwise." She winced. "I _hate _Mr. Beasley." 

            Ian laughed and Sena glared at him. "Uhh… hey, I have a suggestion," he said quickly to avoid her wrath, "why don't we go down to McDonald's for lunch? There's a group of others who are going there, we could meet up with them and be back in time for that math's exam."

            "That's a great idea," Rosanna replied, silencing Sena, who had been about to object, with a glare. "Let's get moving."

            The three teenagers began wandering in the general direction of the big 'M' sign, chuckling and arguing, happy in their ignorance of the horror that was about to befall them.

Author Note: I was meaning to add in the STARS members, but I sorta liked that dramatic ending… spooky… but they'll be in the next one, I swear! ;) Please give me feedback, I'm not much of a writer and need motivation!! R&r


	2. Traveling

Hellooo! I've managed to write another chapter probably because I had exams and **study** leave. Not that I did much studying but hey… So, if you find any random facts like "the Treaty of Locarno was signed in 1925 and represented the spread of goodwill throughout Europe, as the Eastern boundary of Germany was accepted under this agreement" just bleep right on over it. Who knows? You might even learn something!!;)

Shady_777: Cheers, I reckon I needed a bit of encouragement. Last time I wrote a story in English I got an F glares at the offending paper I **hate** my English teacher… Anyways, I went to that website. You're right, it's good.

Chapter 2: Traveling.

"So, where exactly _is_ Brideswell?"

               Chris groaned inwardly. Jill had been asking that same question at regular intervals ever since they left the new STARS' headquarters half an hour ago. Chris could relate to her feelings but _still_, at least he didn't keep repeating himself every couple of minutes. It made driving very distracting.

               "Brideswell is 20 miles south of Raccoon city," he said patiently, for the umpteenth time. "It's a nice place, actually. Peaceful. I went there for a couple of weeks with Claire when I was 10. It's small, even smaller than Raccoon, but it strikes me as being a nice place to live."

               "Not if it doesn't get blown up it isn't," Jill mumbled bitterly, shrinking back miserably in her seat as she remembered what happened to her own small hometown. "When are we meeting up with Rebecca and Claire?"

               "They said they were at a place called Haast. I think we'll be there soon. But I'm bothered by something. How did someone find out that the T virus was spreading?"

               "An ex-employee of Umbrella's?" Jill suggested, watching the scenery flash past. It was mainly open tussock country. Very boring.

               "I don't think so. They didn't seem to understand it as being a virus. They called the carriers zombies and thought it passed like vampirism… And they didn't sound like a mad scientist," Chris added as an after-thought.

               "Well, the T virus is sorta passed through biting people… and vampirism is like a virus, that was on that Blade 2 movie. Loved that movie. Now it just seems a bit too similar to real-life for comfort. What did they sound like, though?" asked Jill, who was still gazing out the window of the silver Lexus.

               "That's the thing… it was weird. It sounded like I was talking to a kid- someone about 8- who was only pretending to be an adult. But at the same time it didn't sound like a practical joke… Whoever it was, they were scared. Petrified."

               "Here's Haast," Jill exclaimed, spying a sign. She turned to look at Chris, flicking her brown hair behind her shoulders as she processed what he'd said. "That's really weird. How would a kid know about something like that? It doesn't make any sense."

               Chris shrugged as he spotted Claire and Rebecca. Claire looked irritated, Rebecca, merely amused.

               "What's wrong?" Chris asked as he pulled up beside them.

               "I have been stuck in this small town… no, area… no… place too small to even_ HAVE_ a name for FAR TOO LONG!" Claire practically screamed. Rebecca, however, stuffed a fist into her mouth in an attempt to prevent herself from laughing.

               "Really?" said Chris, "it's been that bad?"

               "You'd better believe it! Why would anyone come here? This place consists of a gas station, restaurant and two hotels. Population: 5 people, 3 goats. If I stay here any longer I'm going to lose my BLOODY mind!"

               "Well, we'd better be off then," said Jill, opening the back car doors from the inside. "How did you guys get here, anyway?"

               "My friend took us," replied Rebecca, who was now combing her fingers through her short ginger hair, no trace of laughter present on her face. "Billy took us. But he was taking a different route that didn't go through Brideswell, and so this was the closest he could take us." She looked sad, but then brightened. "Claire's absolutely right, though. This place is one helluva hole."

                 "Thanks for the confirmation," said Claire, gracing Rebecca with a quick smile. "So, the T virus hovers threateningly like a dark storm cloud over the town of Brideswell, eh? How did _that_ happen? How did the T virus get to such a sleepy town?  I mean, it's not like it's an important place or anything. Has there been another spill?"

               Nobody answered, and the quartet drove closer to their destination, a feeling of dread deep in their stomachs. Not one of them would admit this feeling of unease to each other but it was present, like, as Claire had said, an ominous cloud.

***

Wesker swore. Loudly, and repeatedly.

               "Crap!" he yelled, booting his car. "Why aren't you going?"

            The car remained silent. Of course, Wesker could probably get to Brideswell faster by running, thanks to his speed and strength-enhancing virus. _But that's not the point_, he told himself_, it's the principle of the thing. My company gives me a budget car… I should've stayed with Umbrella…_

               However, that's just his anger talking: it's a hollow threat. If he hadn't left Umbrella, Wesker would most likely be a test subject now, with scientists bugging him day and night to unravel the secrets of his mutated virus. He shuddered. Maybe being a badass scientist wasn't such a good career move after all…Thinking of all the infected people he'd treated he began to feel a little guilty.

               He shook himself mentally. _This is no time to develop a conscience! I've gotta get moving!_ On the way he'd passed Rebecca Chambers and Claire Redfield. (He snarled at the thought of the name 'Redfield'.) That meant the meddlesome STARS had somehow been informed of the situation, and would be coming to investigate.

               Wesker could not allow that to happen. His contract forbade it. Besides, he wasn't really that friendly with STARS anymore, what with having tried to make them into test subjects or die…

               With one last malevolent glare at the useless car, he turned and headed off north to Brideswell, determined to get there before STARS did.

***

"So," Sena said, eating her lunch of bologna sandwiches and gazing at the sky as she lay on her back on the field again. "Do you think you guys will win the basketball game on Friday?"

               "Hell yeah," said Ian as his face floated into her field of vision, "as long as the other team doesn't show up!"  
               Sena gave a snort of laughter. "The game's not for another week, right?"

               "Yeah. So?"

               "So… I could probably poison the other team in that time… or figure out how to make flying shows or self-scoring goal hoops… then you'd have a chance at least…"

               Rosanna gave her friend a disapproving frown. Ever since Ian had asked Rosanna out, Sena and Ian had an almost brother-sister relationship, always bickering in a friendly way. The teasing was amusing, but quickly became annoying. Well, for her, anyway. Deciding it was time for a change in topic, Rosanna joined the conversation. "How's your friend?" she asked Ian, who was examining his own sandwiches with a look of disgust,  "He was very quiet last night."  It was a bit of an understatement. The ride to pick him up had been dull and uncomfortable. Sena still hadn't forgiven Rosanna for "dragging" her along.

               "Ben? Oh, he's fine…" Ian said airily. Then he looked doubtful, and lowered his voice. "Actually, I've no idea how he is. Look, his house was destroyed in Raccoon City when it was nuked, and his little brothers in the hospital. Ben was away at a sports tournament at the time. His mom and Dad are at his grandparent's, because that's where the best hospital for his brother in. He's staying with us until his parents come back."

               "That's terrible!" said Sena, her eyes wide in horror and sympathy, "no wonder he's upset. Imagine…"

               "Yeah," Ian agreed, "just, don't mention it, okay? I think it's a bit of a shock still."

               Sena and Rosanna nodded in mute agreement, each shivering at the thought of arriving home to find their own house destroyed, not knowing if their family was safe.

               A thought occurred to Rosanna. "Do you think he knows what really happened? I mean, all that stuff in the newspapers… that sounds like bull to me. It's just a cover-up."

               Sena rolled onto her stomach, interested, and decided to abandon her already wilting sandwiches. Discarding them, she listened intently.

               "That's what I thought Roz," (Rosanna made a face at the sound of her childhood name) "But I dunno," admitted Ian. "I thought that myself and was going to ask him but, I thought it might seem a little insensitive."

               Suddenly, a black blur sped over the lawn.

               "What the..?' Ian mumbled as he leapt to his feet. The blur disappeared before he could really register what it was. "Curious, how very interesting."

               "What was?' asked Sena, confused.

               "Didn't you see that?" Ian asked frantically.

               "See what?" Rosanna said, even more baffled. "What just happened?"

               Ian shook his head. "I'm not sure… it looked like a person, dressed all in black and running… but, no one can move that fast, can they?"

***

Claire stared gloomily out the car window. They had now reached Brideswell. Despite the brightness of the summer day Claire found the atmosphere of this little town oppressive, almost threatening. Shaking it off as a trick of her stressed mind, she turned to join the others in conversation.

               "Barry should already be here," Chris announced from the driver's seat. "He's probably booked into a hotel or something. I'll give him a ring in a couple of minutes."

               "He's coming? I thought he wanted to stay at home and protect his family," said Jill voice. Claire couldn't see her, but knew she was next to Chris. Something was going on between those two, even if they didn't want to admit it.

               "That was the original plan," Chris replied, "but I don't think he wants to be left alone to dwell on what happened at the mansion."

               "Fair enough," added Rebecca. "I don't think I'm ever going to think about Raccoon City in the same way ever again."

               "And it used to be such a nice place…" Claire sighed, tears forming in her eyes. She'd lost more than her home because of Umbrella; she'd lost a close friend as well. The tears threatened to spill as she thought of Steve._ Why couldn't I have just told him I loved him when I had the chance? _She asked herself. _Now he'll never know…_

               "I think the virus would have spread through the sewers. That's the most obvious place," Chris told the others, not noticing Claire's emotional pain. "The thing is, we don't know how to get into the sewers."

               "Someone here will know. The question, is how do we get them to tell us without arousing suspicion?" Jill was thinking logically.

               "Say we're with the Sewer's Corporation, or something?" Rebecca said hopefully. Her friends gave her the disbelieving look she deserved. "Oh, come on guys. You didn't have any ideas."

               "We could search," suggested Chris, "or go around dressed as giant rats." Laughter bounced around the car.

               "Yeah, but that would take absolutely ages and we'd look REALLY daft," objected Jill. "Why don't we follow the drains from the sea? Hmm, that'd take a long time too. What do you think Claire?"

"Well…" said Claire hesitantly. "Won't there be something in the library under town planning?"

The others stared at her, suddenly feeling very stupid.

"Well, beats my idea," Rebecca beamed. She pointed through the window. "Oh look, it's the high school. Can't be a very big one though."

"No," Chris agreed, watching through the windshield, "I remember there being a couple of people from Brideswell in the Raccoon one."

The STARS members watched as three of the students on the field jumped to their feet, startled. The tallest, a boy, dashed a few paces before stopping, evidently thinking whatever he was doing was a waste of time. The two girls looked equally bewildered and gazed about, confused.

               "I wonder what's going on," Chris mused, watching the obviously shaken teenagers.

               "Maybe we could ask them if the have heard anything about 'zombie' sightings?' offered Jill. "I don't really fancy looking inside a library on such a sunny day."

               "Or at all, Jill," Claire teased. "You don't strike me as being the dedicated studious type."

               Jill grinned. "You might be surprised to know that I was a real nerd at school then. Then I meet you guys and lost whatever coolness I had managed to gather!"

               Chris flashed her a smile. "True, true. Let's go see if we can find something out."

***

Mentally, Wesker cursed himself. Those teenagers on the field… one of them had seen him, he was sure of it. If only he had been paying attention to where he was going… still, maybe they thought he'd been seeing things, a trick of the light. Or something.

               He pushed the encounter to one side. It was not important. He needed to focus on finding the leak. 5 miles of forest and 15 miles of open land separated Raccoon City and Brideswell. It was unlikely, however, the T virus had been borne on the wind, as this would've infected more than just one place. His initial guess was the sewers, going on his knowledge of where waste ended up. Wesker fervently hoped his theory was right. The head of the "Corporation" were less than pleased with his performance so far. _Good work in Raccoon City, Wesker, _he thought remembering the 'Chief's' words from the briefing. Looking back, Wesker realized they were a threat. If he screwed up one more time…  suddenly Wesker didn't want to waste his last chance on an assumption. He needed to ask someone about anything strange, and where such things had been occurring, fast.

               Musing about where else he would hide if he were an infectious virus, Wesker began to walk about the town. He was just turning the first corner out of the school grounds when…

               "Albert!? What are you doing here?"

               Full of dread for the first time in ages, Wesker turned. There in front of him, stood his only cousin. Wesker cringed. He was quite happy pretending he had no other relatives, but here was the spanner in the works. However, as Wesker needed to gather information about the city and his cousin seemed to live here….

               Wesker plastered a fake smile on his face. "James!" he said with feigned cheerfulness, "I haven't seen you in ages!"

***

Author note:

Hehe… I'll be posting another chapter soon. I've almost finished it, I just have to figure out some minor details. Still, It'll probably be here by Wednesday if all goes to plan. Don't forget to review! :)


	3. Missing Children

Another chapter complete. Please tell me what you think of it.

RE lady- sorry I didn't respond to your review in the last chapter. I posted it before I checked my email. smiles nervously sorry bout that but thanks for reviewing.

James Bond- you're right, I really have no idea what happens in the next games. In fact, I don't really have a clue where this story fits into the series. Still, I went to that site. I'm not sure if I want to be explaining myself to any diehard PS2 fans out there. Thanks for the headsup. 

Shady 77- I LOVE your stories. You should go professional. I bet you'd make a fortune XD

Chapter 3.

            Ian turned to the girls. "I'm not seeing things, trust me."

            Rosanna nodded, surveying her boyfriend with an expression of concern. Sena, however, smirked, disbelief etched into her features. 

            "I swear!" Ian insisted, though his blue eyes showed a certain element of doubt. "A guy dressed in black just ran over here" (Ian dashed left as a demonstration) "and… heck, you're probably right. Maybe the heat's to me."

            He wandered back to his friends and sat down. Rosanna squeezed his hand for comfort. He smiled at her, and then turned to the still smirking Sena. "Don't say anything," he ordered her, pointing an accusatory finger.

            Sena held her hands up in submission. "I wasn't going to," she grumbled, "give me some credit." She sat back down on the grass and re-arranged her regulation scarlet blazer while muttering inaudibly.

            A young man in some blue uniform foreign to the teens walked up to the group, followed by three women. "Everything okay here? You guys looked a little startled before."

            Rosanna gave a small smile and nodded. "Ian here's seeing things," she explained, giving Ian a playful shove and flicking her long reddish hair over her shoulder.

            A woman, who resembled the first man slightly but was wearing jeans and t-shirt, stepped forward. "Hi, I'm Claire. These are my friends Jill and Rebecca, and my brother Chris." The STARS members gave a little wave when she said their names. "We're from out of town."

            Sena nodded. "I'm Sena and this" (she indicated Rosanna) "is my friend Rosanna. That's Ian there. I guessed you weren't from Brideswell."

            "Is it that obvious?" the one called Rebecca asked.

            Sena shrugged. "When you live in a small town like this, you know everybody. It sucks at school cos the teachers always say stuff like _when your father was in this class he used to pay attention to my lectures, Miss Leaven. You would do well to learn from him. _It sucks."

            Rebecca nodded in understanding. "I could see how that would happen. I'm from… **was** from Raccoon City."

            The teenagers sat up, alert. "Really?" inquired Ian. "My friend, who's staying with us, he's from Raccoon. I don't believe what the newspaper accounts say, something else must have happened."

            Jill nodded. "Yeah." (She deliberately gave no details. The kids looked somewhat disappointed.) "So we came to Brideswell to check that nothing… strange… has been going on."

            Rosanna frowned. "I don't think so… unless you count those disappearances."

            "Disappearances?" Chris asked, thinking this could be the information they required.

            Sena nodded. "There's usually only one a year or something, and the kid has always been found within a couple of days. But this year there's been three disappearances in as many weeks."

            Chris began to say something, but Jill cut over him, remembering what he told her about the mystery informant. "Kids? How come they go missing so often?"

            Rosanna explained. "Besides the Junior School, there's Eons Forest. The kids go there to play all the time, even though it's forbidden. It's a dangerous place, because the mines from ages back aren't all discovered and closed off."

            "Mines?" Chris asked. "This town was built on mines?"

            The teenagers turned to Ian, who was obviously the leader in the field of local history. 

"Yeah," he frowned, thinking, "I think coal mining began in this area in about 1840. Then, for some reason, the mining was abandoned about 10 years later. People having been trying to start it up again, but can't hire anyone, I guess miners are just superstitious. But the mines are still there. Some say they eventually join with the sewers."

            Claire was excited; the guess about the sewers was a good one. "Do you guys know how to get to the sewers?"

            This time, everyone turned to Sena. Chris raised an eyebrow. "Sena was one of those hard-outs as a kid who searched everywhere for the Seven Steps. It's this game where if you find the seven steps, you die before you reach the seventh. I think it was in a book. If anyone knows where the sewers are, Sena's your gal." Ian explained, sending a sneer in Sena's direction. She glared at him in response.

            "Well," she considered, getting down to business, "The best place to go is probably Kenly Bridge, which leads into the older part of town. I heard that there's an old manhole just over the bridge. I was never enough of a 'hard out' to go and check out though. I'll ask my sister. She's in the Juniors and might know something else. Meet us here at the same time tomorrow, and I'll tell you more." Sena turned to Rosanna and swung a small blue bag onto her shoulders. "Come on, Roz, let's roll."

            "Where are you going?" Rebecca asked their retreating backs.

            "To school for exams," Ian replied for them.

            "But I thought this was their school."

            "Naah," he shook his head. "This is the boys' school. The girl's school is in the center of town. Some of the classes are mixed though, and the boys' school is bigger. We wear the same type of uniform though." Overhead, a bell rang shrilly. Ian sighed. "I'd better get going, math exam."

            He gave a wave and left.

            "Do you think inspecting the sewers is a good plan?" Claire asked her brother once he'd gone.

"It's the only lead we've got," Chris replied, "where else could the virus spread from?"

            Jill gazed thoughtfully after the boy. "And those disappearances," she reminded them, "It could just be coincidence, but I doubt it."

            Rebecca shuddered and pulled her red jersey more tightly around her lithe form. "I hope those kids are okay." Nobody said anything. It was doubtful, if the virus had gotten loose.

            "Maybe one of them was our caller," Chris wondered. "But still, how would they know to call **us** of all people?"

            The STARS walked away to find Barry, each feeling a twinge of apprehension for the missing children, and hoping that Sena's information would be helpful.

**

Wesker took another sip of his coffee and surveyed the restaurant. It was small but cheery. The light wooden tables and comfortable chairs made him relax. All in all, meeting with his cousin hadn't been such a painful exercise after all. First he'd been escorted around town- that didn't take long- then he'd been forced into grabbing a cup of coffee. His cousin sat opposite him, talking constantly. James had his brown jacket swept over the back of the wooden chair and was now wearing only a teal short-sleeved shirt. Thankfully, no questions had been asked about Wesker's sunglasses.

            "So, it's worrying what happened at Raccoon City. I'm glad you're okay. No one had heard from you and we were starting to get a bit worried." James smiled benignly over the rim of his cup of tea.

            Wesker felt a little uncomfortable. "Sorry about that. I was a bit tied up relocating all my stuff and everything," he lied, "I completely forgot to call anyone." 

Actually, Wesker was, quite frankly, amazed that James even remembered what he looked like. It had been since the birth of James second daughter, Amy, that the family had gathered. And that was 9 years ago. Being an only child, Wesker did not go to many family reunions. Besides, he was a ruthless mad scientist. He wasn't _supposed_ to have a family; it didn't seem to fit the picture.

James smiled indulgently. "Liar," he said, not unkindly, "you just didn't want to call us." Wesker didn't reply. What could you say to something like that?

            "We're not as… troublesome as you might think, us relatives. We all hate going to reunions, but that's just part of the fun." Wesker still disagreed. James continued, oblivious.

            "Where are you staying?"

            Wesker started. He hadn't thought of that yet. "I'm sure I'll figure something out," he replied. He began folding the napkin idly.

            "Nonsense," James said. "Stay with us. There's a spare room. The house has seemed unnaturally small since Sara moved out." He sighed ruefully. Sara was his ex-wife. They had split, Wesker remembered vaguely from a family e-mail, about two months earlier. "We would love to have you stay with us. You don't really know my two girls."

            Wesker shook his head automatically. He wasn't a family man and being inside while wearing glasses 24/7 was bound to start some awkward questions. He adjusted the shades uncomfortably. "I would hate to intrude so soon after the divorce."

            James grinned a bit. "So you _DO _read the family e-mails. I can't stand them myself. Come on, stay with my family. It'd be no trouble at all. I refuse to take no for an answer."  

***

Ben sat on the fence, twirling his thumbs. Checking his watch again, he realized it was 4:15. Ian was supposed to meet him here quarter of an hour ago. He sighed and gazed about for a sign of Ian. The fence was at the start of what was called "The Woodland Path". Trees with dark trunks and canopies of green blocked his visibility of the track after the first bend. The ground appeared to be strangely orange, like it would be, he imagined, in autumn. Ben wondered if he would still be in Brideswell then. His thoughts drifted back to his injured brother. He was improving, his mother's letter had told him. It didn't make Ben feel any better. He should be with his brother instead of in this lazy town.

            Ian ran up. _About time, _Ben thought.

            "Sorry 'bout the wait," he wheezed, "Exam ran late. I never want to see a math's paper again in my life." Two girls in uniform came into view further down the woodland path. Ben recognized them as being Ian's companions from the night before.

            "What's happening?" Ben asked.

            "Not much," Ian replied after gathering his breath. "I'm gonna go to the Brideswell Pond to search for that lost boy and girl tonight. Do you want to join?"

            Ben shrugged. "Sure. Did you know the kids?"

            Ian shook his head. "Not really, only by sight. They seemed to be nice kids though."

            The girls caught up. "Hi," Rosanna greeted them.

            The boys acknowledged her with a head-bob. "Do you know when volunteers can join the search tonight?"

            "Half seven," Sena answered. "But I plan to be there earlier than that. It's a good thing it's warm tonight, or it would be hard to search. Kids have got to stop playing in these woods." She gestured to the area around them.

            "Would you have?" Ben's question took Sena by surprise.

            She stared for a moment in to his deep brown eyes. "No," she replied sheepishly, "the danger was all part of the fun."

She looked as if she planned to say more, but her cell phone began ringing. "Hello?" She said, walking away from the group a bit.

            "Are you coming with us tonight?" Rosanna asked Ben. She liked the boy much more now that he didn't seem so surly.

            Ben nodded and smiled. The action completely changed his face. "I think I'll help."

            From beneath the trees, Sena gestured frantically at them. "Do you guys want to come round for dinner tonight?" she hissed at them.

            "Sure," Rosanna answered.

Ian shrugged and turned to Ben. "Do you want to, or would you rather stay home?"

            Ben glanced at the faces in front of him. "I'll come," he said, strangely proud to be involved.

            Sena nodded and began talking to her phone again. A moment later she stuffed it into the small duffle bag she was wearing. "Do you guys want to stop by your houses and change? Then we can go to the search straight after."

            Ian and Rosanna nodded. The red blazers and gray skirts and trousers were not particularly comfortable. The looked like something from the 60s. Ben felt lucky he didn't have to wear the uniform and go to school until after mid-year exams were over.

            "Right then, let's go, I have to pick up Aims and some food from the supermarket on the way home." She turned and walked off.

            "Ian," questioned Ben as they followed down the woodland track, "Who's 'Aims'?"

            "Her little sister, Amy," Ian replied.

***

I keep trying to figure out where to finish a chapter. As a result, I always have the next chapter partially finished by time I post the first one. That might change when I go back to school, I don't know. I don't really have any class work to do 'til the end of the year so I'll probably get through this story pretty quick. Anyways, at least I'm finally writing a fanfic. Please review so I can know what you think of it ; ).  


	4. Dinner

Hello! I'm back again everyone quakes in terror and I've got another chapter. I'm not entirely happy with this chapter, but I can't figure out what's wrong with it. Any ideas? That's one of the reasons this is a bit later than usual. Also I'm back at school now getting my exam results gulp and having teachers scream at me and give heaps of prep. I don't think I'm that bad at history… jeez… grins shakily

Shady777 and RE Lady:… aww eyes brim with tears You guys are so nice :: sniff :: begins bawling

Storyteller23: Thank you! I like your story. Sorry I wrote such a crappy review but I really REALLY like your story. I eagerly await another chapter.

LISTEN UP GUYS, read _Alone in the haunting darkness_ 'kay? Good.

Chapter 4:  Dinner

Claire sighed as the newspaper in front of her blurred into a myriad of black-on-gray shapes. Ever since meeting up with Barry and booking a room they had been sifting through all the information on any the missing children.  Frankly, it was getting REALLY boring. 

She glanced around the hotel room. It was painted in bright reds and yellows. Claire had been sitting cross-legged in a deep red armchair as she deciphered an article. Chris and Jill huddled round the round steel-framed glass dining table, making notes. Rebecca sat on one of the two single beds that were in the main area, scowling heavily, hard at work. Barry, however, paced the room, unable to focus on the task at hand.

            "I can't concentrate," Claire declared. "I'm gonna take a break."

            Rebecca grunted and reached for yet another newspaper over the white bedspread.

"I think I've got something," called Jill, her pen poised above paper covered in notes. "It says here;" (She begins to read,) "_following the disappearances of five children in Eons Forest, Mayor Rodney Stewart is calling for closing off public access to the forest. "The children (all of whom attend Kenly School) have not been found," said the Mayor after making this proposal. "It is our duty to prevent this from happening again. The only way to do this is to cut access to the area._" Jill looked up. "It's from three years ago."

"Three years?" Claire repeated, peering over Jill's shoulder. "Maybe there isn't a connection between the virus and disappearances after all."

"Or maybe," Chris muttered darkly, "There's been a spill for longer than we thought. That would explain the _superstitions _Ian was talking about earlier."

 "Can zombies live for three years without food?" Barry wondered.

            "Rats are food," Rebecca said distractedly, scanning yet another newspaper. "Hey! This is interesting. All the found missing children report hearing guttural screams and something like clawed footsteps."

"Could just be imagination coupled with fear and school stories," offered Jill.

"Or another sewer lab," suggested Claire. She shuddered at the memory of the one in Raccoon City and the late mutated Dr. Birkin.

"Doubtful," replied Barry. "I don't think even Umbrella would let children just wonder into their labs."

Rebecca looked up from a recent newspaper. "There's a Volunteer's search tonight at Brideswell Pond, in the center of town. It starts at seven thirty."

            Chris considered. "Let's go. We might find something of use."

***

Sena scanned the area for a sign of her little sister. The entrance to the Junior's School looked deserted, only concrete and bushes in sight.

            Rosanna, who was now wearing a yellow t-shirt and stonewashed denim shorts, found her first. "There she is," she called as she pointed to a small figure in jeans and greens huddled reading a book under a leafy tree.

            Sena ran up to her little sister. "Hi Amy. Let's go." 

Ben could tell they were related. They shared very similar delicate features and icy blue eyes that could as quickly sparkle with laughter as glower with rage. The only real difference- apart from the ages- was hair colour and height. Unlike her Sena, Amy had dark brown hair and would eventually be a good half-head taller than her medium-to-short sister. Apart from these (and the six year age leap) they could almost be mistaken for twins.

            "You're late," Amy complained with mock haughtiness.

Sena shrugged. "Walk home by yourself then."

            Amy gave her big sis a playful punch. "And risk being mugged in the woods? Not likely!"

"Mugged by whom?" Sena teased "Aggressive squirrels?"

Ian, who was wearing all gray for no apparent reason, stepped forward. "Sorry 'bout the delay, you graciousness, but we're feasting at your fine dwelling tonight. Therefore we had to change clothes as to avoid incurring your wrath and bring a piece offering of ice-cream." He gave a deep bow.

            Amy decided to ignore this mocking contribution to the conversation except for one minor detail. "Ice-cream? I love ice-cream!" 

She promptly grabbed Sena's arm and raced off down the Woodland Path. Ben raised both eyebrows in bewilderment. Rosanna laughed, "That's the Leovans for you. They're all crazy!"

            The remaining three chased after the siblings.

_Jeez. These girls can run!_

***

James sat at an octagonal table. He picked idly at the yellow tablecloth and stared unseeingly at the normally breath-taking view of Eon's Forest and Brideswell Pond. It offered him a view of the 'Woodland Path' that his daughters always took. He sat; content to wait for their arrival.

Wesker had long since ordered James out of the kitchen when he began to burn the butter again for the fifth time in a row. He was now bustling reasonably happily around the kitchen. James watched him with a bit of envy; Wesker seemed to be a good and experienced chef.

 "Amy, Sena and Sena's friends should be here soon," James said, noticing some movement on the path below. "They're going to search for the missing children after dinner."

"Missing children?" asked Wesker who began mixing some sort of chicken gravy.

"Yeah. It could've been Amy who took a stumble down a mineshaft. Or into the sewers." Wesker stiffened. "I just can't make her see how dangerous running around those woods can be.

            Wesker put the gravy pot on the stovetop to boil. "Does this sort of thing happen often?"

            James scowled. "Oh yes. No one ever does anything about it though. A couple of years ago the mayor of the time tried to fence off the forest. It looked like the wood was going to be closed off when he simply disappeared."

"Who?" The mayor?"

James nodded. "Some of the mines have been closed off but it's no where near enough. Nothing else has been done since. I'm a bit worried about Sena going searching at night in case she comes across an unmarked mine shaft. I'd come to look out for her myself but… I have a feeling that Amy's gonna try a breakout tonight and, well… at least Sena can take some care of herself."

Wesker thought for a moment. He'd obviously have to search for an opening to the sewers eventually and the locals would know these **and** be searching them tonight.

He could probably use Sena's knowledge of the area and, despite trying to convince himself otherwise, he felt he owed it to James to watch out for his daughter. He told James he would accompany the group in their search.

"Thank you," said James, clearly meaning every word.

Slamming of the front door alerted James to his daughters' arrival. A dark-haired girl wearing a green polo shirt and jeans bounced down the hall and into the dining room. She was followed by a red-haired girl, a tall blonde boy and a medium-height brown haired boy. The last boy seemed familiar to Wesker, but he didn't know where from. 

The tall blonde boy introduced himself as Ian and put a container of chocolate-flake ice cream into the stainless steel freezer. "Got some supplies for you Mr. Leovan," he said with a slight grin. "All the junk food you need is in this humble shopping bag."

"Excellent," replied James. "This is my cousin, Albert Wesker. He decided to take over my kitchen tonight, so if there's something wrong with the food, it's all his fault, don't blame me." Wesker smirked. "Where's Sena?"

"Here," replied a short blonde girl. Sena had discarded her uniform for a more flattering pair of sky blue shorts and a lime green t-shirt. The first thing Wesker noticed about her was she had the 'Wesker-family' eyes. She turned her ice-blue gaze on him and looked confused at the sight of his aviator shades. Wesker took a deep breath and held it. The youngest girl, who could only be Amy, stepped forward.

"Uncle Al," she said, calling him this title with no obvious embarrassment, "what are you cooking?"

Dinner was a success. Wesker may have been an evil deranged scientist but he sure knew how to make a darn good butter-chicken. To his surprise he found he was actually enjoying the company. The sunglasses were not mentioned, to his relief, but his nerves would be severely shaken before the meal was over.

            He sat opposite his brightly clothed eldest 'niece' who talked incessantly, seeming not to require any input from the listener's point of view. At the head of the table, James joked with Ian, Ben talked to Amy, and Rosanna sat with glazed eyes beside Sena as she rambled on.

            Despite himself, Wesker felt himself growing fond of his two exuberant nieces.  _I'm becoming sentimental! This is **not** supposed to happen! Must be a virus side effect…_

He promised himself he would complete this mission, even if part of his reasons were to prevent James' family from being in danger of another 'Raccoon City'. Still, emotions had no place in his line of work and he began to grow worried. Wesker fervently hoped this new development would not jeopardize his investigation.

            Around him, conversation continued. 

"So how did you find the English exam, Rosanna?"

"Not too good, Mr. Leovan. We had to write an essay on 'fate' in Romeo and Juliet. I ended up making up some quotes and adding some scenes…"

"Do you have any more exams?" he directed this question to his eldest daughter.

She nodded briefly. "Geography at nine tomorrow morning and Bio at one. Bio should be easy but geography… who knows? I am dropping **that** as soon as I get a chance."

"Why do you think biology will be easy?" Ben asked as he examined a piece of chicken which was hanging off his fork.

"It's my best subject," Sena replied. 

 Eventually conversation morphed to reach the missing children.

"Do you know them?"  Ian asked Amy as he snagged a bread-roll form Rosanna's plate.

"I sort of know Aaron. But not Celia. She's from St Andrews."

"St Andrews?" The school was unheard of by Wesker.

"Yeah. It's about five miles out of town. Celia went… **goes** to a school for the terminally clever." Amy made intelligence sound like a distasteful disease.

Sena sent a cold glare down  "I went to that school, you know."

"I know," replied her sister with a very cheeky grin.

"That would be in the open land, nearing Raccoon City and the Arklay Mountains, right?" Wesker inquired.

"I'm from Raccoon City," Ben said suddenly. Wesker realized he'd probably seen the boy around town some time before.

            "We met some other people from Raccoon City at lunch today," Rosanna reminded them. "They were very interested in the sewers for some reason."

Wesker stiffened in apprehension. He had a sudden premonition of what he was about to hear.

"Really?" Ben asked. "Who?"

"Um… red-something and… Rebecca and…. Someone else."

"Redfields, Chris and Claire, Rebecca and Jill," Wesker supplied grimly. _I knew they were coming here!_ This made his mission a bit more difficult.

            "You know them?" Sena asked surprised. She focused her blue-eyed gaze on him.

"Yes," he gave a strained smile. "I'm from Raccoon City too."

"Whoa," Ben began. "You're Captai…" Something stuck in Wesker's throat. He looked very uncomfortable.

"We'd better going," Ian interrupted. "It's five past seven." Wesker exhaled shakily. Things like this were happening far too often for his nerve's comfort.

Rosanna nodded. "Right. Do we have; compass, flashlights and chalk?"

"Chalk?" Amy looked confused. "Why chalk?"

"The old minotaur way. You know, so you don't lose your way in things like labyrinths and stuff." Rosanna explained, albeit a bit inaccurately.  "It's for if we end up searching the mines."

James looked apprehensive. "Is that likely?"

"Not really. That's the experienced chaps' work. This is just a safety precaution."

"Check for all," replied Sena. "I've got my whole 'outdoor pursuits' bag. What about you guys?"

"We should all have flashlights and stuff. Do you mange to pick some gear up at Ian's house?" Rosanna asked Ben.

"Yeah. I think I've got everything."

"Good-oh. Let's get moving. Should I drive all you slackers down?"

Sena shook her head. "No point. We can walk from here Roz. Get those leg muscles working."

Wesker cleared his throat. "I think I'll come too. Don't worry. I have my own gear." He gestured to a black shock bag by the door.

Amy scowled. "This sucks Uncle Al! Dad and I are the only ones not going! This is going to be REALLY boring. You guys have all the fun." James gave an exasperated sigh.

"You call walking around in the woods when you could be watching some prime TV fun? Naah," responded Ben. "Tell you what, I'll find a moose and bring it back for you."

Amy positively beamed and began to usher them out of the house.

"A moose?" asked Ian when they were some distance down the path. "WHAT?"

            Ben shrugged. "We were talking at dinner about the woods and all these legend things. She said she thought she saw a moose in the forest when she was younger."

            "But, a fricking **moose**?" Ian exclaimed incredulously.

            "Hey! It worked didn't it?" Ben said defensively.

            "That's true," replied Wesker coldly, successfully ending the conversation. His affection ran only to his family. "Is this Brideswell Pond?" He gestured to a group of people in the dancing torch light up ahead. The sun had already set and darkness was quick to take its place.

            "Yeah," replied Rosanna. "Mr. Wesker? Celia and Aaron have been missing for three days. Do you think there's any real chance of finding them alive?"

            Wesker shifted uncomfortably. "I hope so." The honesty in his voice startled him.

He began pondering the mystery of possible emotional trauma, caused by the virus which now ran through his veins, as they joined the large group of at least two-score people by the Pond. A flash of light illuminated the face of Chris Redfield. Wesker sent a smile his way, an evil smile full of malicious intent.

_***_

Mwahahaha…. koffs so anyways… it all comes together you see? (Well, most of it.) They'll be entering the sewers sometime soon spooky music plays. Who knows what will happen next? MwAHAHAhaha…

I'll try to get the next chapter finished sooner. Who knows?

(I'm a sucker for melodramatics. Do you like my maniacal laugh?) REVIEW PLEASE


	5. The Search begins

Hi all. It's a longish chapter today because I have had enough time to write it all. Now that school's back, it's hard for me to get on the net without fighting my brother for it. As he's older than me and through the years has perfected the art of delivering an effective yet painful dead-arm, it is needless to say he generally wins. I'll try to make up for it with longer chapters.

Thanks for the reviews! 

Chapter 5: Search begins

"You should've turned right back there," advised Barry.

"No," Chris argued, "That would've taken us to the hospital."

"Face it," Claire piped up from the back seat, "You have no idea where you are going."

From the front passenger's and driver's seats, there was no response as the two men steadily ignored her.

"Why is it men never ask for directions," Jill grumbled from beside Claire. 

As if to prove her wrong, Chris swerved to the side of the road. He approached the elderly man who was feeding the ducks on a nearby park-bench. He was a kindly gentleman, and after a few minutes of discussion and gestures, Chris sat behind the wheel once again. This was _his_ car, and no one else was allowed to drive it. It had taken the better part of twenty minutes to find Brideswell Pond, but finally they had arrived, even with ten minutes to spare.

            Brideswell Pond was at the outskirts of Eons Forest. Trees fringed the edges of one side and a large iron grate was set inches above the surface water. In fact, it looked more like a well than a pond, the walls of it having been built up I and a half meters higher than the water- but level with the ground-with red brick to prevent flooding. 

Chris could see the water clearly. The water was free of algae, dark as obsidian, and despite the brightness of the moon and searchers' torches, there was no reflections of light on the surface, giving the illusion that the pool actually _absorbed _light. It was a portentous scene to begin a search with.

He spotted a group by the pond. There were at over thirty, ten of whom who were wearing bright yellow and orange t-shirts and reflective strips. As he approached the group gathered at the water's edge, a beam of torchlight hit his face, momentarily blinding him. 

Through the after images of the light he saw a familiar blonde-haired dark glasses-wearing face sneering at him across the Pond. _Wesker…_ Chris hurried to find the others.

            'Wesker's here," he told them in a low whisper. He shook his head slightly as he tried to rid himself of the dancing bright spots before his eyes.

            "Where?" Rebecca's eyes looked haunted. She had good reason; Wesker **had** shot her. In cold blood.

            Chris pointed at black-clad figure over the water. Barry snarled. "This definitely means something to do with the T-virus has happened here," he growled.

            Jill privately agreed, but outwardly she shook her head slowly. "Not necessarily," she said. "It could just be coincidence."

            Barry snorted. "Yeah, right. He could simply be visiting his family."

Claire peered at Wesker. "Aren't they who we were talking to earlier?" she asked, referring to the group he was talking to.

            "Yeah, I think they are…"

            "What!" Barry exclaimed. "They know Wesker?  It's probably a trap and they've been telling you false information!"

"Or," replied Claire lazily, "You could just be paranoid. Don't blame the kids. They probably think he's a kind man to search for someone he doesn't know in a strange town. _They_ are the victims here."

Barry looked a little shame-faced, "Sorry. Gut reaction."

The group fell silent as the leaders told them the plans and safety measures the search required them to carry out.  The entire group was paying careful attention, so Claire was the only one to see what happened next. 

Wesker examined the storm water grate. It was rusty and neglected, but served to keep people from wandering into the dark drain. Rosanna stretched an arm through the bars and retrieved a sodden bit of material. Claire watched curiously as the group argued heatedly. Wesker fumbled at the grating, then opened the gate. Sena stepped through immediately, followed by Rosanna. After a seconds' deliberation, Ian also went through the gate. Wesker looked pointedly at a guy Claire didn't recognize, but he also went. Wesker looked over the volunteers to glare at Claire before silently closing the gate. She wondered briefly if the teens knew they were on the wrong side, or had even CHOSEN a side.

            "_Do not, under any circumstances, go anywhere alone or without the knowledge and approval of a Search Leader. This is for your own safety and the efficiency of the entire search…"_

"Someone's already disobeyed one of those rules," she hissed in Chris's ear.

            "What?" he spun round. The rest of the group followed suit.

            "While the instructions began, Wesker and Rosanna and the rest left," she began to explain in a hurried whisper.

            At the end of her account, Chris swore. "Wesker is taking those kids down to their deaths. Isn't the gate supposed to be locked?"

            Claire gave her brother a withering glance. "Do you honestly think that would've slowed Wesker down if he wanted to go through it?"

            The group turned to look at the storm-water drain. "The drain stops flooding in rainy periods," Rebecca said unnecessarily. "It will definitely carry the excess rain water into the sewers."

            STARS headed off to the grating.

**

Ian shone his flashlight down the length of the tunnel. The sewers had walls that were probably some sort of grayish green. 'Probably', because they were so covered with grim and sludge it was hard to tell. Rosanna walked with her left-hand against the wall, leaving behind a trail of white chalk. In the other, she held a damp pink jersey bearing the name "Celia Tappan".

            Ian watched her with awe. She and Wesker were the only ones not fazed by the stench. Higher up, the smell had been barely detectable. Here, it was trying to choke him, infecting his lungs and making his eyes water. He would've breathed through his mouth if the air didn't seem so thick with lethal microorganisms.

            Beside him, Ben coughed and spluttered, "Ugh, that's NOT a good smell." Sena covered her lower face with her hand. They all followed Wesker and Rosanna. Ian watched as Wesker told Rosanna something inaudible. She looked a bit shocked but put the chalk way.

            Idly, Ian wondered why they hadn't told anyone where they were going. It made more sense in terms of safety and efficiency. But Wesker had been against it. What did he know about Mr. Wesker anyway? He was Sena's relative, from Raccoon City, had some weird attachment to dark glasses… and there was something else. Something Ben knew, Ian could tell. 

A memory sat at the edge of Ben's mind, stubbornly refusing to be remembered. Whatever it was, it was important. Something was wrong here. Ian caught his eye and he shrugged a question, _what is going on here? _Ian too objected to leaving without a word.

Perhaps Sena and Rosanna trusted more easily than the boys, or were simply more desperate to find the children, but they needed no time to decide about going down into the sewers depths at the behest of a man they hardly knew. Sena probably had come to the rational conclusion that uncles didn't generally kill their relatives. Ben refused to trust the man and Ian was naturally suspicious of someone who actually **wanted** to explore the muck that is the sewers.

Of everything, Sena's rashness shocked Ian the most about the whole scenario. She was **terrified** of small, enclosed spaces. Before a school mining trip, she'd deliberately sprained her ankle to get out of going, so why was she so eager today? He guessed it was Celia. The little girl went to Sena's old school after all.

            Further down the tunnel split in two. Wesker cocked his head, as if listening for something. Ian copied him, hearing nothing. Suddenly, Wesker went to the left without a word. Ben and Ian exchanged confused glances, but followed.

***

Jill slid down a steep and slippery slope into the sewers. The temperature was lower here, and the reek of the sewers more potent. She pushed it from her mind and continued down the tunnel, hearing her fellow STARS members following behind. Wordlessly, she turned on her flashlight to penetrate the gloom.

            A line of white cut through the sludge on the rounded sewer wall. Jill pointed it out to the others silently and began to follow it. After a few twists and turns, the line abruptly ended. Around the corner the tunnel split in two. With some whispered commands from Chris, so did the group.

            Jill and Rebecca went to the left. Jill wondered why the other member of her group was **_Rebecca_**. She had, admittedly, found her teammates dead in the mansion, but had not handled it well. Jill was worried she would become a hindrance and be of little help. _What if I get into trouble? Can I rely on her to help me out? She did help Chris sometimes in the mansion, but…_ Maybe Jill was being unnecessarily harsh, but these thoughts swirled through her mind, making her uneasy, distracted and irritable.

Rebecca sensed Jill's mood and guessed its cause. STARs didn't look upon her as a coward like Vickers, but didn't trust her as much in extreme situations as they would, say, Jill or Chris. Her lips formed a tight line. Mentally she promised not to let anyone down.

            In such away did the two proceed down the dim channel that they were not aware of Wesker until he hit Jill squarely in the face.

***

Barry went up ahead cautiously. Wesker was down here somewhere, and that meant the group was far from safe. An expression of distaste crept across his face as he continued down a narrow platform that was a meter from the putrid river of filth. He heard a faint sobbing.

            Chris heard this also, and went to investigate. A boy, no older than nine, sat hunched on a ledge alone. Barry recognized him immediately from newspaper photos. "Aaron?" he asked.

            Behind them, Claire hurried round the corner as a big rat scurried over the ground. It paused in the middle of the tunnel and looked at her. It was easily as big as a cat, and muscled, lean. It was covered in places with thick glossy black hair. Elsewhere, skin had fallen off to reveal rotting flesh. It glared balefully at her, red-eyes menacing and sinister. Claire stared in horror and revulsion.

            Her experiences in the Raccoon Sewers had told her that rats didn't generally attack unless you got too close to them. They also told her that these rats were infected with the T-Virus. Her worst suspicions were proven correct.

            "There are lots of these rats in the sewers. Almost everywhere… but…they aren't further down, you know," said Aaron in a high-pitched voice. "Nothing is… apart from _them_."

            "Who?" Barry asked gently.

            The boy shook his head. "Is Celia around here?" Claire pressed.

            Aaron's head snapped towards her. His clothes were ragged and dirty and hung limply around his scrawny frame. His tawny hair lay in a matted mess of dirt and twigs. In short, his whole appearance spoke of poverty and poor hygiene. But his eyes… they were sunken deep into his head and wide with panic. The boy was absolutely terrified.

            "They have her," he squeaked.

            "Who?" Barry repeated. "Who has her? We're here to find you both."

            Aaron looked around frantically. "They're coming! The vampire children! The zombies!" His eyes began to roll wildly. Claire looked away sickened.

            "Hey," said Barry with surprising gentleness, showing his fatherly skills, "It's okay. You can get out of here. Go down this way and just keep left. You'll go up a slope and eventually through a gate. There you'll be at Brideswell Pond, where everyone's searching for you. Tell them we came down here. Okay?"

            The boy nodded, for the moment calm. Barry gave him a slight push in the direction of the exit. He headed down the grungy tunnel.

            "Wait," Chris called softly, recognizing the voice. "Did you call STARS?" Aaron nodded. "Why?"

            "The vampires," he whispered, "my brother told me to ring STARS if I really truly saw something. So I did."

            Chris smiled sadly. "Goodbye."

***

Wesker grinned as he towered over Rebecca and Claire. _Meddling fools_. Rebecca trembled as he sneered at her. Wesker grabbed the unconscious Jill by the collar of her blue jersey and pulled her down the tunnel. Uneager to lose her, Rebecca hurried after him.

***

In the darkness, Sena shut her eyes as Ian and Rosanna began arguing. She argued with Ian herself all the time, but when Rosanna did… It made Sena uncomfortable. It was too much like the time before her parents' divorce. She sunk to the floor and pulled her legs to her chest. A child-like gesture, but it helped lock out her pain.

            She couldn't see as Ben leaned towards her. Without the torches, the tunnel was cocooned in darkness. "You okay?" he asked.

            She snorted in reply. _No. Memories bite. Here everyone is arguing about how trustworthy **Uncle** Al is while we should be searching for Celia and Aaron and all I can do is stop myself from crying._

Claustrophobia drained her senses and the fear made her exhausted and weak. She fought to keep her hysteria under control, but the pitch-blackness didn't help her at all. _Why did he make us turn off the torches? It makes the darkness seem alive. _She tried to laugh it off. _I'm afraid of the dark?!_ It didn't help her much.

"Talk to me," she said, "please. About anything. I need to stop myself from losing it."

            Ben obliged. "When I was at a camp in the mountains, I realized I had become thoroughly lost…           

            Sena listened half-heatedly, catching only the occasional word. It served to distract her from her fear, and for that she was thankful. She couldn't even tell what the story aws about now. A camp… and how Ben's decision got the whole lot of them lost in the forest. Maybe not a cheery topic… but Ben told it lightly. 

            He listened to the gloom for a sound of Ian and Rosanna. They had been listening to his story, and had stopped arguing. Sena was more relaxed. He smiled to himself. _I am a help to these people,_ he thought, _even if it is only to distract them with something stupid._

            "I'm going to look for Uncle Al," Sena declared. The title Amy had used was comforting. She would use it as well. It added a bit of _normality_ to the situation. Not that being in a sewer is family outing but… Ben's tale had calmed her enough to realize that Wesker had been gone for a while, alone. There was a very real possibility that he was lost. Sena did not like losing family members.

 "I don't think-" Ian began.

            "I **know** you don't think Ian," she snapped. "I'm looking for my uncle. I'm not asking for permission. Keep them out of trouble, Roz."

            She disappeared out of hearing. After fifteen minutes, by Ian's watch, a light shone down the tunnel. Wesker returned with two women who had asked about the sewers earlier. He returned with a gloating smile and with a confiscated torch. But without Sena.

**

Wesker glowered at the teens, Rebecca and unconscious Jill. _Sena is lost? How do you lose someone just like that? I need to find her; she could be in a lot of trouble. How did this **happen**?_

            Echoing down a tunnel, just loud enough for his ears to pick up, Wesker heard sinister laughter. _Sena_. If she was going to be anywhere, down that path was as good a guess as any. It sounded like she could use some help.

            He glared at the group. "Stay here," he commanded. "I think I know where Sena is, but I don't want to lose you all."

            "Why don't we come with you?" Ian asked.

            Wesker gestured to the unconscious Jill. "Look after her." Without another word, he disappeared in the direction of the laughter.

***

In the darkness, Sena trembled, and not only because of the cold. Wesker had set down a passageway a long time ago, and she had been _certain_ it was this one. Unnerved and worried he would get separated from the group; Sena had followed.

            She cursed her stupidity. Now it was she who was lost. Her fingers searched frantically through the contents of her bag as she continued down the tunnel. Finding her torch, she snapped it on.

            This part of the sewers was the same as any other. Thinking of finding some chalk to leave a trail with, Sena delved into her pack once more. She couldn't find any. Trying desperately to still her quivering hands, she peered down the tunnel as far as it would go.

            "Huh... hello?" she stammered. "Anybody there?"

            There was no reply except for a low snickering behind her. Sena swung round with the torch, to find nothing. Severely shaken, Sena abandoned all sagacity and prestige. Still trembling, she ran unashamedly away from the mocking laughter as it grew steadily louder.

*******


	6. Lost

Yay! Thanks for all the reviews… I feel so happy!

Chapter 6: Lost

Alone and cold, Sena traipsed through the tunnels of the sewers, only half-heartedly looking for an exit. Sometime ago, despair had set in. She now walked aimlessly, utterly lost. The darkness seemed smothering, the air seemed tight. _Claustrophobia_ she told herself. It was little comfort.

            The mocking laughter still rang in her ears. She shuddered and broke into a jog. This was not a good place to be.

***

Rebecca looked anxiously at Jill. She looked okay. Just a bleeding, or maybe even a broken nose, but nothing life threatening. As she watched, Jill came to. Slowly, Jill pulled herself to a sitting position.

            "What's going on?" she asked through clenched teeth. Fiery waves of pain shooted through her head.

            "Sena's missing," Rebecca said. "Wesker's going to find her."

            "But we could just leave! Why are we staying here?"

            Rebecca sighed and looked over at the group of teens. "They won't come and I can't leave them here."

            "Fine," Jill reached for her radio. "Hello? Chris, anybody? This is Jill. We've come across Wesker down the left fork. He's gone now but the kids won't follow us. What do you suggest doing?"

               Static replied. Jill and Rebecca waited nervously. "Stay there," Barry commanded. "We'll come to join you. How do we get to where you are?"

            "Go down the left fork at where we separated. Go right at the next fork, then continue straight, you should be able to see us," Rebecca told the radio breathlessly.

            "Roger that. We're on our way. Over and Out."

            Jill turned off the radio. "What's going on," she demanded of the teens.

            "We aren't moving till Wesker gets back with Sena," Rosanna said defiantly.

            "Wesker," replied Jill, 'is a cold-hearted son of a bitch who doesn't give a sh!t about Sena or you."

            "I disagree," argued the brown-haired boy. "Wesker is Sena's uncle. I doubt he would do anything to put her in danger."

            "What's your name?" Rebecca asked.

            "Ben."

            "Well, Ben, I'm from Raccoon City…"

            "So am I." The bluntness of the reply completely derailed Rebecca's train of thought.

            "Then you know what happened at the Spencer estate," Jill commented. Ben nodded. "We were there. We were STARS. Wesker was our captain. He betrayed us. I was locked in a cell while all our teammates were killed. He shot Rebecca point blank in the chest. Wesker isn't capable of feeling compassion."

            The group absorbed her bitter words.

            "The why," Ian asked quietly, "did he leave to find Sena and risk you scarpering or following him to shoot him? Why did he tell us to stay here and look after you if he's an evil bastard?"

            Jill opened and closed her mouth several times. "I don't know," she settled on. "But I would be very surprised if it was out of love."

***

Claire hurtled down the passage after Barry and Chris. The time wasn't right to tell Jill and Rebecca about Aaron, but they'd completely forgotten to tell them about the T-Virus definitely being present in the sewers. As a result, everyone was hurrying to get to the girls before something else did.

            Claire rounded the corner to find Jill and Rebecca arguing heatedly with the teenagers. Jill looked terrible. Blood caked her face. But she was arguing with enough energy that it was clear she was fine.

            "What's going on?" Chris demanded.

            "Wesker's gone searching for Sena and these guys refuse to move," Rebecca said.

            " We've found Aaron, but not Celia, and this place is definitely infected with the T-Virus," contributed Claire.

            "You've found Aaron?" Rosanna asked.

            "What's the T-Virus?" wondered Ian.

            "It's what happened to Raccoon City," Jill answered hollowly. "It can infect all types of creatures. When you catch it, your cells begin to die, but the virus, I dunno, reproduces them in some way. You die, but your body keeps on living. An unintelligent, soulless husk."

            Ian stared at Ben, his expression merging both horror and pity. "This is what happened while your family was there?" Ben looked thoroughly despondent.

            "How did it get here?" Rosanna asked to keep the conversation just slightly less morbid.

            "It spread," said Claire. Her voice was oddly emotionless. "Through the sewers it came to Brideswell. That is the cause of your myths."

            "But those are old legends, dating back to the death of Arben Reeve's daughter."

            "_Who_?"

 "This is fascinating," growled Barry, "But you're missing out a very important part of the story."

            "I've told them about Wesker," Jill warned. She sensed this was the direction of the conversation. "They are certain he's a 'good guy'. Nothing I say can change anything."

            "Nothing, eh? Wesker helped develop this virus, since he was eighteen. After he lured us to the mansion, he died. I **saw** him die, skewered by his own creation."

            "And then, last year," Chris picked up the story, "I came across him again. He's not human. His eyes, reflexes and senses are like a cat's or snake's. He is **NOT** human. Maybe a long time ago he was capable of emotion but not now. Not for a long time."

***

Wesker himself sniffed the air. Sena had been down here not so long ago. The sinister laughter continued, and it was getting very annoying, but it goaded him on.

            With his speed, it wasn't long before he reached her.  She was wandering the sewers slowly, the narrow beam of torchlight quavering in her trembling hands. He touched her shoulder lightly.

            Sena screamed and whirled to face him, bringing her hands up in self-defense and dropping the torch. Her hands fell in embarrassment as she recognized Wesker. "Sorry, Uncle Al," she whispered.

            Her face was paler than a sheet and her breathing laborious. She searched the ground for her torch. "Darn. I can't find it. Ugh, I feel **so** stupid. I don't suppose…?"

            "I don't have a torch," Wesker replied.

            "What do you have in your bag?"

            He shrugged. "Kerosene, lighter…"

            "Why?"

            Wesker stalled for time. "Your torch is broken. We should just get going."

            "I can't see didley! How can you see that a **torch** is **broken**?"

            "I've got good eyesight." Sena didn't buy it, so he continued without letting her speak. "I wish this laughing would stop."

            It did. Goosebumps spread over Sena's flesh. "For some reason, that's even more creepy than when they… it… was laughing. What is making that sound?"

            Wesker didn't answer as the mysterious laughers circled around them. He realized just how vulnerable Sena was in the dark. She couldn't see a thing.

            Suddenly, Wesker pushed her to the ground. "Get out of here," he hissed, "I'll find you soon." Sena obeyed. She rolled to the right, stood, and sprinted blindly. Miraculously, she avoided both walls and these… things.

            With enhanced vision, Wesker could tell they were originally human. It seemed the T-Virus had mutated on its journey through the sewers.

            Most of the carriers were short and not fully grown. _Children,_ Wesker presumed. He felt peculiarly nauseous. _Strange, things like that haven't affected me before._ He focused on the nearest creature and prayed Sena wasn't being followed.

            The eyes looked much like his own, glowing ominously with inhumane light and of a feline shape. They were dull purple, as not to show out too much in the darkness of the tunnel. Through those magenta eyes, Wesker saw a gleam of intelligence. They were definitely smarter than most infectees of the T-Virus, and were also much stronger and quick to react, as Wesker soon found out the hard way.

            He watched these new creatures warily. The skin was less rotten but had deep gorges and scratches. As he observed the differences, they closed in on him. Within seconds, Wesker felt he was at the bottom of a rugby scrum.

            He struggled valiantly to get them of him, but to no end. The lip of one of them retracted into a snarl, revealing elongated canines. They came dangerously close to his neck.

_Oh god… definitely not good… gotta get out of here…. Oh sh-_


	7. Vampires

Chapter Seven: Vampires

Oh sh- 

Teeth sought for his neck. He jerked his head sharply to the left and they closed on his shoulder instead. Wesker wrenched it free. Blood seeped through his dark clothes for a second before he felt the wound heal, skin knitting together. The bite wasn't deep but served to stir him into motion. Using all his strength, he pushed the 'vampires' to the side. The attackers collapsed to the ground like a circus troupe failing to form a pyramid.

He leapt to his feet and kicked the nearest viruser in the stomach. The blow was not acknowledged. Undeterred, Wesker slammed his fist into its head. It imploded on impact and splattered the others. They turned to him accusingly.

Wesker had no time to fight all of them, though he wanted to. It was not your average zombie who could take a bite out of **him**. Turning on his heel, he hurried after Sena. Though fast at close quarters, the vampires were definitely not long distance runners. When he found her again, Sena was still sprinting. He stopped her before she toppled into the sewage below. He put a hand on her shoulder and guided her through the tunnels. 

            "Are they following?" she asked timidly.

            "Probably. But we can be faster than they are. I can handle them it I need to. Probably. And  there's bound to be more than one way out of this place. " She nodded, not really focusing on his words. "Are you all right?"

            Sena made a vain attempt to regulate her breathing. "Yeah. Just claustrophobia."

            Wesker frowned. "Is that why you ran-off?"

            Sena managed a weak smile. "No. I thought you would get lost. Stupid, ay?"

            "No, brave." He gave her an awkward hug, the action feeling unusual. "Thanks for the thought."

            "You're welcome. Can we get back to the others? Do you know a way out of here?"

Wesker paused. "We can't go back the way we came, but I think I might be able to get us out of here, as long as we don't get ambushed by those creatures."

"What about that torch? Can we use it?"

"Probably not. I'm not going to take any chances. It could lead those creatures to us."

"But I can't see!" Sena protested. Wesker didn't answer. They walked in silence for what seemed like an age. All that could be heard was a hurried scampering from the tunnels behind them. The acoustics of the sewers were misleading, giving the illusion that the creatures were closer than they really were. 

So…What are those things?"

            "Do you want the story or the real version?"

            "…Real?" she ventured.

            Wesker took a deep breath. "This might sound unbelievable…"

Wesker and Sena continued through the sewers. The smell of fresh air was faint this far under the city, but Wesker could easily follow that fresh scent to lead them out or at the very least, find the others.

            His story might have distracted Sena, but he was uncomfortably aware of the creatures following him.

***

Chris bullied the teenagers into following them. Confused and scared, they did not take much persuading. 

            "We should stick together from now on," Chris muttered to Barry and Jill. "I don't want to know what 'vampire children' are that Aaron was talking about, but if we do find out, I'd rather it was as a group."

            "I agree. How big are these sewers?"

            "Very big," Rosanna said, evidently eavesdropping on the conversation. "Every time something is built there has to be an excavation dig. Like that shopping mall, they found underneath it a medieval mass plague graveyard."

            "This town is built on layers," Ian continued. "Graveyards, mines, sewers and civilizations. They run deep and spread far. That's why the sewers are so dangerous."

            "I don't know why anyone would want to come here though," grumbled Ben. The stench had faded though, and the darkness was not as depressing. Ben guessed he was getting used to it.         

Chris, however, felt disturbed by the knowledge the sewers were so large. It meant Celia and Sena may never be found. Also, eradicating the virus threat would be difficult, but he had no desire to bomb the place. They would have to find another way.

            Jill was also thinking disturbing thoughts. The mention of plague graves… the swirling liquid on the surface of the sewerage… Could the virus, on being exposed to chemicals and possibly remains of bacteria like persinia yestis, the cause of the plague, mutate? With her experiences, it seemed more than likely.

            Behind them by a couple of steps Claire and Rebecca talked quietly with the teenagers. Because of the smaller difference in ages, they got on reasonably well. At the moment, Rebecca was picking their brains for information about the sewers and possible contamination.

            "So if these sewers are built in layers, and all sorts of things are down here, it is not surprising many people go missing?"

            Ian thought quickly. "I guess not. But not many people actually go missing. Only a few every year, most of them children who came across an unmarked mine shaft."

            "So more people should go missing?"

            "Yes, no. I have no idea. I guess sometimes tramps and travelers are lost but no-one knows about them."

            "Hang on," interrupted Claire. "When we talked to you on the field, you said there were three disappearances in three weeks!"

"Oh yeah… the first was a homeless guy. We only know he was missing 'cos his body was found at one of the entrances. The police did a background check and found no one had seen a few days before the body was found."

"Where is the body?"

Rebecca talked over here. "When did these disappearances begin?"

            "After the death of Arben Reeves' daughter," Rosanna replied.

            "You've mentioned that name before, haven't you?" asked Claire.

            "Yeah, I don't know much about her though."

            "I do," said Ben, "when I was talking to Amy-"

            "- And she told you about the moose-" Ian added.

            "Yes, that- she was telling me about these myths concerning the forest and the games they played."

            "How did you know to ask about that?" Ian marveled.

            Ben shrugged. "I didn't. I was just trying to stop her from pestering everyone about not being able to go."

            "What did she tell you?" Rebecca asked, interested.

              "A story…"

Mwahahahah… that's for not giving me many reviews for my last chapter!! *grins evilly* Sorry, Shady Triple 7, *gives a cookie shaped like a zombie,* but thanks for reviewing. Anyhoo,  really only a filler chapter this time, but the next one will be this story Ben's talking about.

Ben: I'm looking forward to it and you should too. I'm a much better writer than Sych.

Sych77: Oi!

Roz: He's got a point you know.

Sych77: …. *blink* ….Right that's it! I'm going to kill off both your characters as soon as possible!

Roz &  Ben: Ahhh! Help us reviewers, change her mind, by pressing the purple button in the bottom left of your screen and submitting a plea on our behalf!!!!

*hint, hint*

Whaddya reckon? Should I begin killing people off? REVIEW PLEASE


	8. Story Time

Ben: Right, I'M taking over this story for toady. I _am the better writer, but let's get going before Sych77 hears me saying this…._

Sych77: Too late!

Ben: *Gulp* Aaaah *runs through dark sewers.*

Sych77: Possibly my favourite chapter right here. It's like a prologue.  Well, hope you enjoy it! Reviewer responses below!

**The story of Arben Reeves' daughter.**

Arben Reeves Manor exists now as an old gray-stone building with majestic architecture, statues and magnificent gardens in the forests of the mind.

In the mid-nineteen century _(Author Note: that's the 1800s, remember?)_, it was in Eons Forest. It had a twin in Raccoon City, which would come to be known as the Spencer Estate. Both were owned by the prestigious Arben Reeves family, and had been for many generations.

            At this time, the present Arben Reeves was a middle-aged gentleman, Christopher. Unlike his predecessors, Christopher was a kind genial man who was involved in and respected by the Brideswell community. He was educated in science, political science and calculus at an esteemed university in England. His beautiful wife Sophitia was also of aristocratic birth. They were the closest to a celebrity couple as you got in Brideswell.

            Christopher and Sophitia Arben Reeves had two children. The eldest, an eighteen-year-old son, William, was brilliant at sports and physical activities. He was seldom indoors, despite his high-grade study results, and society was fond of the exuberant fun-loving boy. He was raised to a high standard, educated in honour and duty. William wanted the most of all to be a good person.

            His sixteen year-old sister Victoria was different all together. She was a solitary child and made no attempt at establishing a friendship with the town kids. Her only friend, or rather, associate, was a cousin called Veronica. She disregarded the town games and sports. Instead, she spent long hours revising complex scientific and mathematical theories or strolling through the forest. She was thought of throughout the town as a charming dedicated young girl.

            She was as pretty as her mother, blonde hair and emerald eyes with a dainty figure. It pained her parents that she was so anti-social; even with her family the relationship was anything but close.

            She was late for dinner. This would see her punished as in her parents' eyes punctuality was a measure of respect, and respect was required of children to their elders. Usually a servant would have been sent to find her, but this night, her brother was.

            "William, dear, please find your sister," Sophitia reclined in her chair and asked in a soft voice. She never needed to raise her voice above a whisper in the domains of her own house.

            Christopher barely glanced at his son from the head of the table. His gaze scrutinized once more the silverware in front of him. Christopher was convinced the servants were stealing some. All William saw was surly expression and dark brown hair as his father gestured for him to leave.

            Thinking uncharitable thoughts, William hastened to find his sister. In the realm of Eons Forest, skirting the unmarked but abandoned mine shafts, he knew he would find her. Despite it being only half-past six, already the sky was darkening, due to the overcast day. It was both unwise and unsafe to venture out in the darkness, so he quickened his pace.

            After ten minutes of hurried searching he found Victoria. She was with another girl of her age, a very unusual occurrence. William watched from a distance unsure whether to approach.

Victoria did not notice him. She seemed intent on find something within the depths of her deep red gown and leather briefcase. 

The other girl had chocolate brown hair, olive skin and large eyes like molasses. William recognized her from town. Cathy. The friendly one. If Victoria was to make friends is was natural to begin with some one like Cathy. Cathy was always kind and gentle. More often than not, Cathy was organizing a charity event on behalf of the Brideswell Missionary Circle.

In fact, William couldn't remember a time Cathy hadn't been doing something for someone else. And now, here she was, talking to his loner sister. Cathy felt sorry for Victoria, being so isolated. Out of kindness she had come to visit her, although a walk in a semi-dark forest was not quite what she had anticipated. Curiously Cathy surveyed the area. 

            It was an area that had once been a beautiful courtyard, like something from a fairytale. Now the forest had begun to reclaim it. Vines and weeds choked the plants. Moss covered a series of marble steps that led into a gaping hole, the result of small-scale mining. Cathy would have dearly liked to restored the area to its former glory. 

            Victoria found a vial in her briefcase. It contained a violet liquid. Deftly, she attached a syringe and approached the unsuspecting girl. The other girl, Cathy, had no idea what was about to happen.

            William watched in horror the effects of his sister's vial. Cathy's face twisted into a hideous mask of pain. She frothed crimson bubbles at the mouth and constantly hacked up globules of blood. 

Her limbs writhed and settled in grotesque positions. The once graceful and flattering sapphire dress hung in filthy rags among her mutated body: the unblemished skin was now mottled and deformed. 

Soon she was barely human, and whimpered in pain as convulsions racked her body. The only recognizable feature was the dark doe-eyes which bulged in agony and terror. With a pathetic whine of desperation, the eyes focused on William and silently begged for his help.

            Victoria had been watching with a dispassionate sneer. Cruelty radiated from her face as she approached the convulsing girl. With no apparent moral scruples, she retrieved a scalpel from the briefcase and dug deep into the body of the still conscious Cathy.

            Cathy issued an incoherent scream, which transformed into a gurgle as more blood escaped her lips. Blood stained the dress and Victoria's hands and sprayed her face. Victoria tilted her head in bliss. Her eyes widened in ecstasy as she took callous pleasure in the defenseless girl's torture.

Victoria withdrew the scalpel. It shone bloodily in the half-light. Victoria collected a small sample of the blood from the blade and put in a sealed container. She raised the scalpel to Cathy's eye. Cathy struggled for all she was worth but the potion's effect had turned once graceful limbs into awkward sticks. Slowly, behind that eye, the very humane and gentle soul that had been Cathy flicked and dimmed. Satisfied, Victoria sat back on her haunches. She prepared to gouge out a skin sample for further experimentation.  

Frantically William jumped to his feet but he fell, tripped by a gnarled tree root. He scrambled to reach Cathy.

            Hearing the commotion, Victoria deftly drew the scarlet scalpel across the parody of what had once been a beautiful girl's slender neck. Victoria slid the scalpel into the leather briefcase and arranged a sorrowful expression on her blood-spattered features.

            She watched as William approached. His movements were heavy with shock and he trembled. Victoria put on the performance of her life.

            "Oh Will! It was terrible! Poor Cathy… she was allergic to pollen and I didn't realize! I gave her some flowers and she started having convulsions! I tried to calm her down but she didn't notice. She encountered the remains of the fencing of the mineshaft down the steps and it cut her! It cut her so badly… I don't know if she's still alive."            Victoria sunk to the mossy paving stone floor. Her shoulders racked with sobs. It was a very convincing act.

            William willed himself to believe her. He wanted his sister to be a quiet but sweet girl. Her tale was believable enough, her act credible. He would have believed her tale if it was not for one minor detail. Cathy's blood still covered her face, and her eyes still contained the joy of a sadistic killer.

            Cautiously William approached the mutated Cathy. She was not human in death. _Could Victoria have been jealous, or wanted revenge for something?_ William needed to find a reason for his sister's cruelty. He resigned himself to the fact that no, this was a murder. His baby sister was a heartless demon. The words cruel, heartless and demon hardly did her any justice.

            With a heavy and disturbed heart, William gently rolled the deformed corpse down the seven steps into the mineshaft. It would not do to sully the Arben Reeve's name with news that the youngest daughter was a murderess.

            Sickened by his actions he turned to Victoria. She had watched dispassionately as he rid them of the body and know watched with idle curiosity to see his next move.

            "You slaughtered her," he said quietly. He did not accuse or condemn, praise or abuse. He merely stated. 

            She regarded him evenly. "Yes. For research."

            "How could you do that? Kill someone in the name of science?"

            A small smirk crept over Victoria's face. "Easily."

            Waves of nausea rose inside William. _Easily?_ Cathy was friendly and cheerful, not a friend as such but certainly a welcome presence. That Victoria could _butcher _this innocent girl with no qualms was…. **_SICK_**_._ William needed to invent a whole new vocabulary to express his emotions.

            He stood and his back on what his was ashamed to call his sister. She too rose with a fleeting glance of apprehension.

            "What are you going to do know?"

            "I don't know!" he raged. "What can I do?"

            "Nothing," she replied with maddening calm. "It's already done."

            With a nauseating jolt William realized a new truth about his _sister_. This may not have been her first _murder_ but it certainly would not be her last. Desperation settled in a corner of William's mind. He knew what had to be done.

            In the event of a murder trial, Victoria would never be convicted. Her sweet-girl ruse was seamless, and it was doubtful his allegations would ever be taking seriously. If she was rejected from the family, she would meet up with this _Veronica _and who knows what they would do. If left, Victoria would become even more of a monster.

            His shoulders sagged. He stared down into where Cathy's body now lay._ How could this happen? How did Victoria become such a heartless creature?_ Was she always that way? William could remember when she was a young happy cherub. _Did lack of friends make her bipolar? Was she evil even as a child?_ Thoughts chased themselves around his mind.

He felt her presence behind him, and guessed she was also staring into the void. "It's no a bad thing, death. It's sweet to kill. Seductive. Besides, without sacrifices, progress can never be made. Execution of others in the name of advancement is no shameful activity. And as an added bonus, it's fun."

            William turned slowly towards her. Despite her appearance, Victoria was less soulless and human than the remains of Cathy. William took her by surprise and grabbed her delicate wrists. Forcefully he pushed her in the direction of the gaping hole.

            Victoria struggled desperately, but her heavy dress and fragile form impeded her. Gradually, she edged closer to the shaft. First step... second step… her dainty shoes slipped on the mossy marble. Third step… she pleaded with William… fourth step… promised to abandon her work and forgo murder… fifth step…sixth step…. cursed her brother's weakness to see the necessity of sacrifice even though she was crying in fear and remorse… 

            Seventh step… William looked into her eyes. He saw sorrow and regret, and obviously fear. William felt his resolve fail him. He was not a murderer like his sister… he did not think he had the authority to decide who lives and dies… A flicker of his younger sister, before she was so _evil_ showed in her face. It was so tender and troubled he knew he could not hurt her, despite all her faults.

            He pulled her towards him, to get her to safety. All the force that had been acting against her survival still tried to push her off. In surprise, Victoria jerked back from him. He held to her hand tightly. Her shoes slid on the moss and she fell into the mine, leaving William behind.

            William stared after her in horror.

What happened next at the Arben Reeves manor is a mystery. An air of depression fell over the house. A year after this incident, William Arben Reeves committed suicide. Eighteen months after that Sophitia did from illness, and Christopher disappeared.

The manor fell to ruin. In was inherited by Victoria's cousin Veronica. Though the Brideswell Manor was beyond repair, the one in Raccoon City was still in good condition. The name Arben Reeves died out, and was replaced by Sophitita's maiden name of 'Ashford'. 

It was rumoured that the fall- of about thirty feet- did not kill Victoria, and also that she did not die in the labyrinth of sewers and mines. The liquid in the vial is said to be some sort of elixir that when perfected would sustain life and add extra strength and quick reflexes.

The incident and rumours became part of a dark past for Brideswell. They were forgotten by all but a mayor of a couple of years ago, and the children.

The children of course, disregarded warnings in order to find out the truth of these myths. All that was left of the Arben Reeves family was a myth about vampires, a deadly secret under the city, and a childhood game. 

            "Deep in Eons Forest are steps mossy, marble and green

             Leading to a mysterious underworld no living man has seen.

            On those seven steps an evil murderess died

            To pay for all her evil crimes that she attempted to hide.

            Her body may but gone but her spirit lives on strong,

            Mustering an army to attack the town she wronged.

            Her army lives on elixir that gives immortal blood,

            A great reward for selling your soul and living in the mud.

            Find them, descend them; you'll go straight to hell or heaven,

            One- two- three- four- five- six- seven!"

Some childhood rhymes are based in legend or fact, but are often exaggerated or largely distorted. This is one of the few that doesn't do either.

***

So didja like it? Why not tell me in a review? *very subtle*

RamenKitty: Wow! You actually reviewed AND sent me an email?! You deserve a cookie for that *gives a cookie shaped like a handbag* *notices everyone staring at the said cookie* Ah, come on guys, I got hungry last night and ate all the zombie ones. It's not my fault, honest….I'm very interested in this idea about Wesker's family. As for Hulk…

Sena: O_o

Sych77:*snigger* 

(sounds of fighting are heard.)

Sych77:*dazed look* What am I doing here?

Sena: Umm… thanks for the offer. If I survive, I'll think about it some more, okay?

Zarbok: Hi! I had no idea you were reading my story. *Beams* Hope this is a fast enough update!

Shady777: Glad you liked your last cookie! I got Wesker to make it for me, he's such a whiz with foods.

Wesker: You're ruining my street cred here.

Sorry sir. Ahyways, *gives cake like a particularly spooky mansion.* Enjoy. I nicked this cake off him when he got lost in the sewers. Dumb-ass..

Wesker:…..

Btw, Alexia showed up anyway. At two-thirty actually. In the morning. That's why this is updated so quickly. *glances over shoulder at Alexia* Could you get her to leave me alone now please?? It's a little scary having her around. PLEASE??? I send her to you so you have incentive to update your story. ;D

Righto, review time! Come on, please?!


	9. Escape Plan

Right, sorry about the delay. I was going to post this ages ago but I got sidetracked. Sorry 'bout that. Anyway, here is chapter nine. –note- Unfortunately, there are no cookies today. If you want to find out why, read Shady777's supa cool story 'Crimson Africa' and read my review. I love that story. It rules. (Sorry, sidetracked again)

Shady777- Thank you for picking that up! It really irks me when it's in other peoples' work, so I'll try to keep an eye on it! Yeah, Victoria was sorta based on Alexia. They're supposed to be related. (did you notice my sneaky use of a cousin Veronica? I thought that was very sneaky of me) so it makes sense. I hope.

RamenKitty- I'm not sure if becoming an evil scientist is a good career move, but yes, the evil scientist is a chick. Go the sewers! No cleaning required!... ahem….

damien- Are you threatening me? Cos when I read that I was more confused than terrified, which made it a complete waste of time for you now, didn't it. Next time, if you want to threaten me, use something clearer and original, mmkay? If you are threatening me, BRING IT BIATCH… ahem…

Zarbok- I was actually ready to post my last chapter for a long time, I just didn't know what to write for chapter 7, so your review only made me get my a into g and update faster. Umm.. sorry bout the delay with this one. I was going to post it but I went swimming instead. Yay! Thanks for reading! I'll be careful to take the time needed to keep my chapters up to standard. I can sacrifice speed!

READ ON!

Chapter Nine

Sena listened to her uncle's story in awe and with more than a little disbelief. Umbrella… viruses… Spencer…

            And to think, all of Sena's hair care products were made by Umbrella. It was weird and unbelievable, to her ears, that such a company was involved in illegal production of bio-weapons. Umbrella was a widely publicized company, employing millions and catering for many more. Word would've got out sooner or later. _It did a malicious voice reminded her, __in __Raccoon__City__._

            Wesker still guided her through the tunnels. He was distant now having told her his tale, though, naturally, he had left out some of his more… dubious… assignments. He began to feel a little guilty at leading the children into the sewers; suspicions were forming about the virus present here.

            "So those things back there were t-virus people?"

            Wesker frowned. "No. Well they may have been, but I guess the virus mutated on its journey here or…"

            "Or what?"

            "It was already here to begin with."

            "Hmmm… you'd have to ask Amy about that sort of thing, she's into myths and legends and that kinda stuff. But having the T-_Virus_ is just plain stupid!"

            Wesker raised an eyebrow. "Reason?"

            "It should've been bacteria. Easier to control for a start, and if you wanted to make a cure you'd just need to experiment with antibiotics. Though some antibiotics are losing their affectivity, so it would still be difficult but not impossible."

            "Why would anyone want to make a cure?"

            "For the greater good?" In the gloom Wesker raised an eyebrow again. Interpreting his silence correctly, Sena corrected herself. "For money, then. A cure would be worth more money than the _Bacteria_. And then it would only increase in value because of counterfeit ones and…" Sena droned on like this for quite a while, completely forgetting her fear of enclosed spaces.

            "But it's a virus," Wesker reminded her.

            "Can't you make an anti-virus?"

            "Possibly. It's what my new company is attempting to do. They obviously think the same way as you do.'

***

Rosanna sighed. Ian sat obstinately on the floor and refused to get up.

            "Come on," she pleaded.

            "Can't," he whined, "I was never a great distance runner."

Rosanna could sympathise. Her legs burned and she felt a bit dizzy. Her throat was badly parched and the dinner of butter chicken sat uncomfortably in the pit of her stomach. Further down the tunnel, STARS continued. Despite their good intentions, she knew they couldn't afford to wait for the kids. If they got out of sight, Rosanna and Ian would be on their own.

            "Please?"

            "NO!"

Ben approached almost casually. "Come on, you great wuss. Giving up already?" he teased and winked swiftly at Rosanna.

            Ian didn't want to appear weak. "I'm just having a stop to force Roz to take a breather," Ian invented on the spot, "cos I think she's been working herself too hard, what with being a girl and everything."

            The type of humour that comes from extreme nervousness- like before major exams and telling you parents that yes, you did actually take the car and drive into a pole- took over them.

            "What!?!" Rosanna demanded. "That's gender discrimination! Come over here and tell me that again!"

            Ben gave a snort of laughter. "She's going to beat you up Ian! Be afraid of the girly hand of doom!"

Rosanna turned to him threateningly. "Excuse me!?!'

In answer, Ben fled down the tunnel. Ian muttered "good plan mate" and was not far behind. Rosanna gave a half-hearted chase. She was not overly worried about the sexist remarks. Well, not at the moment, anyway. She silently thanked Ben for manipulating Ian. Ian could be stubborn, a trait they had no time for in this situation. Rosanna hoped she wouldn't have to deal with it tonight, or even tomorrow. She fervently wanted to get out of the sewers, the sooner the better.

            They caught up with STARS, who hadn't even noticed their absence. Chris and Barry led the way determinedly and seemed unaware of everyone's presence. _That's reassuring! Rosanna came to Jill. "What's happening?"_

            Jill glanced at her. "I think Victoria Arben Reeves' experiment lives on in the sewers."

            "But that's just an old legend to keep children out of the forest. It can't be true!"

            "Maybe, but I don't want to take any risks. Our mission is to eradicate any sign of a virus down here."

            "What about Sena? Are you going to _try_ to find her?"

            "Of course! And Celia too. It's just that if we don't stop the spread of infection, all of Brideswell could be destroyed."

            "The virus has been here, if you believe the Arben Reeves story, for over a century. It hasn't done much harm."

            It was Chris who answered this, with such a definite tone it was clear the conversation was over. "I'm not willing to have the destruction of another city on my conscience."  

***

Wesker tuned out his 'niece's' ramblings about the stupidity of making a virus. He decided he didn't want to tell her he had a hand in the engineering of this 'utterly stupid _virus_ created by morons". Instead, Wesker concentrated on following the smell of fresh air. He had the uncomfortable feeling that he was getting deeper into the sewers instead of leaving them. Also, he was beginning to doubt the 'fresh air'-ness. It could be a mere air-vent of some other small gap that would be of no use to them.

The sound of footsteps alerted Wesker to someone's approach. A group of someones, actually. They were still distant, but steadily getting nearer. The regular, hesitant steps indicated they were human, but Wesker wasn't willing to take any chances.

            He left Sena and stealthily crept towards the sound. Wesker found himself in an old forgotten mineshaft. He guessed that meant he was still in Eons Forest. Part of the shaft had collapsed, making a pile of earth that took up most of the ground. The walls of the mound were steep and slick and he thought that even if he could make it to the top of the dirt mound, he would need something to help him get over the top. The surface was just over twenty feet above his head. The stars twinkled merrily down on him.

            _Well, there's a way out. Now I just need to find a rope…and burn this place to the ground.  Before he had come on the search, Wesker decided that the best way to get rid of the infection in the sewers was to incinerate it. Maybe some zombies and vampires would survive but it was as good an idea as any. (_Author Note: you'll remember Wesker has some kerosene, etc, randomly in his bag, right?)__

            He made a mental note of the possible exit's location and ventured towards the footsteps. He had not made it out of the semi-collapsed mine when he noticed a shadow behind a pile of rubble. Wesker scrutinised the figure as STARS and the teens came through the other exit.

            Chris and Barry raised their guns.  


	10. Stand off

Hi, I'm back! Sorry about the time it takes for me to post these but I have a valid excuse: It's the summer holidays. Would _you_ stay inside when it's thirty-three degrees Celsius outside in the shade? Well, I wouldn't. Sorry! As Shady777 has pointed out, I am very found of cliff-hanger endings. If this gets irritating, let me know and I'll try to change it. It's just the easiest way to end a chapter, so that's why I do it.

Zarbok and Shady777- Thanks for the reviews! I'm trying to make Wesker's opponents seem stronger, not make him seem underpowered. Sorry for any confusion. Hopefully you'll see what I mean when STARS come up against these vampires in later chapters. (spoiler alert!~) As for portraying Wesker slightly more `human` that's a work in progress. If you want to find out what I'm rambling about, you'll just have to keep reading. insert evil laugh here

Jellysunshine- thanks for the review! Sorry about the twenty feet thing. I work in the metric units, so where there was twenty feet, read something closer to twenty metres or really big distance. (I looked it up and found that it's about three feet to a metre. But feet sounds cooler than metres. Sorry.)

(^_^)

Chapter 10

Chris grinned in triumph as he pulled his gun on Wesker. Barry, being a multi-talented man, juggled both his torch and STARS custom Berretta. Chris's smile faltered when Wesker didn't seem disturbed by his predicament.

          A soft gasp and the extra brightness of more torches alerted Chris to the others' approach. As if on cue, Wesker's features softened into an expression of gentle concern. His voice became light and genial, almost fatherly. In fact, it was very similar to Barry's when he was with his family.

"Is everyone alright? I've been scouring these tunnels form top to toe trying to find you all! Why didn't you stay put, where I told you to?"

Barry recognised that Wesker was mimicking him. In one fluid movement, he rid himself of his torch, levelled his gun and removed the safety with a loud, echoing click. Wesker didn't even blink. Chris shot Barry a warning glance.

          "You left them in a dangerous position, with no means of defending themselves, and you didn't go back for them," he said in a voice flinty enough to light a fire, "you left them to die!"

"Oh come now!" Wesker spread his arms wide in a gesture of innocence. "Would I do something like that?"

_Yes!_ Chris strove to keep calm and collected. He risked a side-glance at Barry. His team-mate's posture was ramrod straight as he glared down the gun-sight with a set jaw and blank expression. However, he showed no sign of intending to do something stupid. Chris allowed himself to relax. Slightly. _Right, what now? Of course, Celia and Sena…_

          "Where are the girls?"

"Girls? I guess one is Sena, and she's safe. Don't know what you mean by the plural," Wesker said, still imitating Barry.

Chris narrowed his eyes. Was he lying? Impossible to tell. Wesker sighed and idly checked his nails.

Barry snapped. "You're involved in this, aren't you?" he hissed, "the clean-up boy, covering everyone else's tracks."

Wesker furrowed his brow at the insult but let it slide. Instead of rising to the bait, he shot a surreptitious glance towards the shadowy corner.

"What are you lo-" Jill began, stepping forward. She abruptly jumped back as a rasping cry issued from the corner. The torches focussed and illuminated a figure. Chris first thought he was looking at a pack of potatoes. Then the thing stirred, and his second thought was Lisa Trevor was alive and well, living in the sewers. It was sometime before he finally realised what he was looking at. Celia.

**

Wesker took advantage of the distraction to haul his black-clad ass outta there. He went back the way he'd come.

_Flick- fli-flick- flick_

In the dank corridor Sena flicked Jill's torch on and off. In bursts the grimy sewer walls and plumbing was illuminated but she stared ahead unseeingly. Thoughts of viruses and cures swam through her mind. She forgot she was cold, hungry and claustrophobic. She also forgot about Wesker, until he roughly grabbed her forearm and dragged her down the tunnel.

"What? What's going on? Slow down!" She jammed the torch into her pocket and with her free hand tried to pry off his fingers. "Let go!"

          Realising he was ignoring her, Sena abandoned trying to loosed his grip and threw all her wait backwards in an effort to stop him, or at least slow him down. The attempt had no effect, but Wesker did eventually stop.

"Thank you-" Sena began haughtily. Wesker cut her off with a low hiss. She became aware of a dull purple glow, in pinpoints. _Like eyes,_ she thought. If they were eyes, there had to be at least fifteen. 

Wesker watched them curiously. The vampires were hesitant. He sniffed disdainfully, and smelt, to his eternal surprise, pine scented cleaner. Wesker waited for his brain to translate it. _A bottle of cleaner? No…. So what then? _Wesker waited some more, receiving an '_um…' for his troubles._

The group of vampires shifted and Wesker decided he couldn't wait for them to make the first move. As much as it pained him, the seven he encountered before had been tough to beat, so fifteen? He ran back to the mineshaft, pushing Sena in front of him.

**  
  


Rosanna heard a dry choking cry from the corner. She turned to find the source, searching with the flashlight, and saw Wesker run down a tunnel out of the corner of her eye. Rosanna ignored him and fervently hoped he was going to Sena. A doubt had flickered briefly across her mind that he had been lying about finding Sena but she paid it as much attention as she did Wesker's exit.

          The creature hissed and slowly, very slowly, dragged itself out form behind the mound of rubble and into the light. The moonlight served to illuminate it, and soon the glow of torches added to the brightness.

          On the other side of the creature, Wesker re-entered, dragging a protesting form that could only be Sena, judging by the brightness of her lime-green shirt. Rosanna sighed in relief. Sena blinked, blinded by the sudden brightness, but managed a small smile and wave before she noticed the _thing_.

          Rosanna realised it to be Celia first, before Chris's confused contribution of "huh? Potatoes?" The cloth that Chris had thought to be a sack turned out to be dirty overalls and a shirt that was once a pale blue. She edged slowly towards Wesker and Sena in such a way that from her position, Rosanna couldn't see her face.

          Wesker, Sena and Chris could though. As always, Wesker showed little emotion, but Chris looked shattered. Sena took a step back, repulsion spreading over her face. Rosanna doubted she recognised Celia to be human. Celia reached out for Wesker's leather boots, her fingernails creating a high-pitched squeak as they came in contact with the leather.

          "Help me," she shrieked in a piercing voice.

          "What's happening?" Ian asked.

          Celia turned her face blankly towards him. Her dark brown hair that had been glossy at the back hung in straggled clumps around her face. Her tawny skin was becoming mottled and tiny red cracks formed in it. Celia gave a smile, or grimace, revealing rotting lower teeth and prominent upper canines. _Vampire Children!_ Chris prepared to shoot.

          "Don't!" Rebecca called. "She's still human."

          Expressive brown eyes fixed themselves on Chris's own. "Help me," the girl choked. She gave a low whimper of pain.

          "Can we reverse it?"

          "I don't think so," answered Jill, "it's a different type of virus."

          "Then we should shoot the poor thing," said Claire. She looked miserable. "Save her the suffering."

          "Please help me!" Celia screeched, reaching in the air for Wesker's face.

Wesker took off his aviators and polished them on his black top. A red glow issued from his face. Celia fell silent, as if the sight of these eyes had ordered her to stop shrieking. The teens stared at him incredulously. Casually, he replaced the shades.

          With the air of a man walking through a park Wesker regarded Chris. He had stopped his mimicking and when he spoke it was in the voice Chris had known to be that of a caring man, the Captain of STARS. But his words were very cold, that of Dr. Wesker.

"So, are you going to kill her yet?"


	11. Tough decision

Wow. Double figures chapter-wise; up to chapter eleven. Wow. And to think I wasn't going to write this at all. Interesting change, isn't it? Well, this is mainly an emotional chapter, so not much is going to happen. But, it's character building, okay? If you think the characters are acting, well, out of character tell me please!

**Question: Are Sena and Wesker first cousins, second cousins or first cousins once removed? At the moment I can't figure it out. Sena is Wesker's cousin's daughter. Whatever that is.**

I would have Wesker Special Recipe Muffins here, but he's going on strike till Shady777 finishes Crimson Africa, so Rosanna offered to do the baking. *looks at plate of blackened cookies somewhat doubtfully* You can try them if you want….

Zarbok: Don't worry, I don't plan to. Yet. Naah, I'm just kidding, Wesker's too important to be killed off. Although it's possible I may change my mind, it's doubtful. He will probably be alive at the end of this story.

Shady777: Thanks for your review! How can you write two stories at once?! *is very impressed* I don't care if Wesker never bakes cookies again as long as I have some of your writing to read! Umm, yeah, I wrote several versions of Chap. 10 and the one where Wesker vs. Chris got cut. Let's just say Wesker has bigger fish to fry.

mmm… fish….

Jade: Righto, here's some more. Thanks for reviewing! *hug*

The cast of BS: We wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas….

Sych77: And a happy new year! Yeah, go the holidays!!

*****Chapter 11: Tough Decision

There seemed to be nothing for it, Celia had to be shot. It was the humane thing to do. Call it a mercy killing, but that didn't make those around her feel any better. Especially Ben.

Whenever Ben looked at Celia's spent body, all he could see was his younger brother. All he could think about was that this poor girl could've been Shaun, that this could have happened to his whole family in Raccoon City. _There but for the grace of God am I… If Shaun had been in this predicament, Ben knew he couldn't just stand by and watch his lil' bro lose his humanity. He also wouldn't have been able to pull the trigger._

This sense of weakness made Ben bitter, even though the situation was slightly less personal. Moral issues were the hard ones to solve, the 'what ifs' haunted people for the rest of their lives.

Wesker seemed the most at ease. He leaned against the dirt wall and checked his nails again. Ben narrowed his eyes at the man, blaming him for the problem. Everybody needs a scapegoat, and Wesker was the perfect candidate. Was it Ben's imagination, or was Wesker less relaxed than he appeared? No matter, this _was his fault, at least according to Ben's frustration._

"When it comes down to it," Wesker said conversationally, "She's going to die either way. The only choice you have to make is whether she does it with or without suffering. Whether she dies as a human or in a great deal of pain."

Sena looked at her cousin (?) in shock. Ben guessed she hadn't been told where Wesker's loyalties truly lay. Of all the teens, Ben could easily accept that the cooking whiz who chatted cheerfully with them at dinner was really a twisted scientist. Probably because it was Shaun who was in Physio, and his house that was destroyed.

**~

Celia began wailing again, and even Wesker shifted uncomfortably. Though for him, the movement was almost unnoticeable. Chris saw it though, with grim satisfaction.

"Go," he ordered the teens, aware of what would happen next.

They didn't move, but rather stayed frozen in horror and uncertainty. Jill ushered them out, bullying them along and pulling Sena over from across the mine shaft. Barry gave an apologetic glance. "Sorry, but I think I'm gonna go too. She just reminds me of my daughters."

Chris barely nodded. He didn't think any less of Barry; the man was still courageous in his eyes. He exhaled shakily and steeled himself to shoot. _I would do this to any of my friends who became infected, because I know that's what they'd want, if there was no chance of being cured. I hope they'd do the same for me. But what did Celia want? She was innocent, and had no idea what was to happen. How can I make that decision for her?_

Sudden movement startled him. Wesker had backed away from the tunnel, towards the STARS. Chris could tell the traitor was readying himself for a fight, but didn't think much of it.

"What is it?" Chris demanded. _Damn. It's going to take forever to get any courage again!_

Wesker didn't answer at first. He didn't want Chris to think he was on the same side, as it were. A sinister sniggering echoed faintly from the tunnel, and Wesker once again could detect pine in the griminess of the sewers. Both things were subtle enough that only his senses could observe them. He straightened.

"If you're going to shoot her," he said flatly, "by all means do it. I have things to do and places, no matter how grungy, to go to. Au revior." He zoomed off in the way only Wesker can.

_Au__ revoir_?___ Since when did Wesker learn French?_

***

The sinister laughter stopped as Wesker approached. The smell of pine was unmistakeable now, but it didn't come from these fifteen vampires, merely someone who had been with them or somewhere they had passed through. The vampires squatted ahead and watched him warily.

A dull gleam of intelligence shone in their eyes. If Wesker's hearing had been any less acute, he would've sworn the creatures were communicating with each other. Perhaps they were, he mused, just without sound.

A single gunshot rang out form the collapsing mine-shaft. Wesker's face remained impassive.

As if on cue, all fifteen vampires edged around him in single file, hugging the wall. They held their hands out in the universal gesture of 'we don' wanna fight'.

Wesker crossed his arms as they sidled sheepishly past him. _Hmm, this is interesting._

_***~_

 Hoped you liked it! Did? Didn't? Review, please, and tell me!

Do you like my smiley face? I learnt how to do it when I put up my last chapter but I forgot to mention it. My friend taught me:

(^_^)   cool ay?

I don't know how long my next one will be coming. *sigh* Writing good, fun violence is not one of my strong points…. Well, expect it when you get it,

Tara!


	12. Sacrifice

Christmas carol:

Barry: _Silent night, holy night. All is calm, all is bright. Round yon version, mother and child. Holy infant so tender and mild. Sleep in heavenly pea-eace. Slee-eep in hea-venly peace. *chimes*_

Merry Christmas in a couple a' days! Who gets to have a white Christmas? Personally, I'm going to go to the beach and have a barbeque with some mates and my family. Cooking for eighteen people in total. Maybe I could hire Wesker….

Sorry, got a chapter ahead of myself. It's Time for STARS' s version of events right about…. now.

Chapter 12: Sacrifice.

"Go!" Chris ordered the teens. Stupefied by shock, they didn't move, didn't hear or both. Finally, Jill pushed them out, dragging Sena behind.

"That's not fair. It's so wrong," Ian muttered.

Jill nodded sympathetically. Her eyes were hard and her face carefully blank. She looked as though she had experienced such things too many times. Knowing the effect such an experience could have on their spirits, she walked with them a small distance from the tunnel.

Rosanna switched on her torch, her friends followed suit.

"Uh, this is your torch, I think," Sena said timidly, holding out the flashlight.

Jill looked at it incredulously. "Where did you get it?"

"Uncl- Cous- I mean, Wesker gave it to me after we came across those things the first-" Sena stopped, pale in the torch light.

"Yes?"

"There are things coming!" she hissed breathlessly, "lot's of them."

"What's coming?" Rosanna asked frantically.

"Small people-like creatures. They can't be far away!"

Barry exited the mine-shaft room and came to join the spooked group. "What's going on?"

"You know those vampire children we didn't want to come across? We're about to meet them."

"Oh. Crud."

**some minutes later***

The teens jogged hurriedly through the sewers. Mainly they didn't think about where they were going; that was Rosanna's job. Instead, they had turned of all their torches but her's and followed the wavering light. They were some distance away from the mine when they heard a muffled sound that could've been a gunshot.

They swayed, but did not stop. "Rest well, Celia," Ben whispered, still running.

***

Barry lowered his gun and glanced at Chris. The man's face was pale and drawn but the first signs of shame were beginning to become apparent.

"I'm so sorry," Chris repeated, "I just couldn't do it. I'm so sorry, I know you didn't want to, but I just couldn't and I'm so sorry…" and on and on he went.

Barry held no resentment towards his friend. It was no shame that one couldn't shot a dying girl, especially when the pressure of several blood-thirsty monsters upon them. He was upset because the girl was so innocent and unawares of what had caused her untimely demise. Barry felt sick and shaken to his core. He had killed a young girl, not too much older than his eldest daughter.

"Not a young girl," Rebecca reminded him, evidently reading his thoughts, "a monster who had killed a young girl."

When she put it that way, it made him feel slightly better.

"How long do you think we have until those things arrive?" she asked, looking a little scared.

Barry shrugged. "I guess they'll be here soon. We should get ready and put some distance between us and them. From what Sena said, Wesker couldn't beat them, and if Wesker couldn't then-"

"-we're sure in trouble," the rest of the team finished.

*~*

Wesker stared after the group of vampires. 

"Well, that was certainly weird."

He debated about following them, but decided against it. _They're only going to attack STARS, and hopefully Sena and her friends will be miles away when that starts. I'm sure STARS will be able to slow them down some. Wesker's expression stated he seriously doubted that. _Meh__, not my problem.__

He did, however, note with interest that this group was much slower. He put it down to a low endurance on the vampires' parts. Shrugging the incident aside, he decided to follow the smell of pine cleaner. It had to have some significance. 

*~*

 Barry and his team-mates did not make it far from Celia's pathetic remains when the sound of movement reached him. He had a tuned ear to that sort of thing, acquired through years of hunting with his older brother Joe. He could discern the light, but still erratic, footsteps of what he had taken to calling the un-dead.

"They're almost here," he whispered to Chris. The rest of the team nodded, they had long since learnt not to question Barry's judgement on this sort of thing. The proximity of an enemy was one of those things he just _knew, like other people can always tell when someone else has eaten their slice of chocolate cake, or whatever. _

Wordlessly, they fell into a formation; Chris, Barry and Jill at the front, Claire and Rebecca at the back. It was an unspoken rule, enforced by Chris, to protect the youngest members of STARS. Ever since Claire officially joined the team the rule had been in place. Chris explained that he wished to protect his ' sisters; the original and the surrogate'. 

In this formation, Rebecca and Claire were literally useless, as well as protected, until the front line fell, a prospect that terrified both immensely. Barry ignored their shaking and concentrated on the approaching footsteps. He believed that the team would be able to defend themselves, he was confident they would all come out of this alive. In short, he was cocky.

*** End of chapter! ***   
  


What I put in my last chapter now applies here. Believable violence= long wait. Sorry, I'll try to be prompt. I keep getting side-tracked. 

**Question of the chapter: how much do you think Barry would weigh?** (This _is_ relevant. You'll see. Include light pack full of essentials. Rough approximation)

Zarbok- here's a ginger-bread man for your review! 

Shady777- Thank you for your review! Barry ate all the other gingerbread men, so here's a Santa muffin. Cousins? Did you notice I tired to include that in this chapter? Thanks for telling me, I'll try to keep it in mind.

Please review!!


	13. Aaaattaaack

I wanted to have somebody singing that Felis Aveda Christmas carol, but I don't know how to spell any of it except the part 'I wanna wish you a merry Christmas from the bottom of my heart' so I couldn't. Sorry!

Bonza! I have 35 reviews! Excellent *steeples fingers like Mr. Burns* my plan for world domination is succeeding! Umm, I mean, thank you! *smiles sweetly*

_Candy canes for all!!_

_Shady777: Thank you! When I read you review I thought "Essentials? Huh?" and then I re-read chapter 12 and found that yes, I did say 'include light pack full of essentials.' This is funny, cos I don't remember doing that. Maybe it's one of those things my past self did to piss off my present self and my present self makes a pact with my future self never to do the same thing and then my past self screws it up again._

_Yes, I am crazy…. Anyway, thanks for reviewing! Just try to ignore the random plot-hole that sees Barry shooting Celia and go with it. Please??? I'm allowed one screw up, right? (BTW, can you please update Crimson __Africa__ soon? As well as being killed by suspense, without Wesker's cooking I am becoming very hard to see sideways on. ^_^)_

_Zarbok: Here's a hamburger! Made especially for you! Thanks for reviewing! (Glad you liked the gingerbread man. I'll keep that in mind for when Wesker finally stops being on strike *glares at the evil guy*) _

_: here's more! Thanks for your review!_

*Gives all reviewers/readers candy canes* A very Merry Xmas to everybody! This is my first fight sequence, so be nice! (Please?) I realise I don't go into much detail. The idea is for you guys to fill in the blanks yourselves. Well, tell me what you think of it!

Chapter 13: Aaaattaaaack!

Leaving the STARS behind was possibly the most trying thing Ben had done in his life. Well, that and leaving Celia behind to her death. All he could think of was how much it sucked to 'Be Useless'.

It was some time before they caught up with Rosanna and Ian. No one felt much like talking and proceeded under a grim shadow of silence. The laughing had started, much to her Sena's distaste. It was the most aggravating sound imaginable. _Of all the sci-fi and horror creatures, we have to be chased by the chuckling ones… Life is so cruel…_

_~ (AN: Seriously, imagine being chased through these grimy sewers under a city at the dead of night no pun intended by mysterious gigglers. That feeling isn't one of happiness, is it? It's full of the same sort of dread that you get when you read a Mary Sue fanfic. Argh, the humanity!)~_

Ben had taken the feeling of Being Useless to extreme lengths. Rosanna had asked him to signpost their route on the corner in chalk. To this request he replied "why should we? Because we're useless there won't be anyone to follow."

Damn pessimistic prick.

The laughter stopped. _That's never a good thing_. Sena exchanged a glance with Rosanna. Her friend began to jog. Sena quickened her pace to keep up.

~*~

The laughter stopped. The silence that followed was unnaturally loud, if such a thing is possible. Chris shifted slightly, checking he was indeed ready for a confrontation. Behind him, Rebecca and Claire had their torches on. For the umpteenth time that night, Chris gave himself a mental bruising. _Night-time, subterranean area. What guns do we bring? Ones that require light. Good going, Chris…_

In the dim light provided, Chris could see the creatures more or less clearly. They were definitely the results of viral experiments. Although they looked healthier than T-Virus zombies, the vampires could never be mistaken for a healthy human in good light. They could pass for a very ill person, though. Their eyes glinted purple in a pale form of Wesker's._ Is this part of where his unique mutation comes from?_

Brushing questions and doubt aside, Chris eyeballed the aggressors, ready to make up for his previous 'weakness' that night. They stared back confidently, led by a tall willowy vampire which was obviously once a boy in his early teens. Barry seemed to be bored by the stand off for he opened fire on the vampires. Chris did realise though, before he was drawn into the fighting, that Sena had been wrong; there were only fourteen.

In the gunfire that followed Chris went through a whole cartridge. Unfortunately, Jill and Barry also had to reload at that precise time. Luck isn't always good. With nothing to hold the vampires back, they attacked twelve-strong. Only two had been killed by the shooting; it was going to be hard to take them down.

The leading vampire had a distinguishable scar from the left eye to clavicle, trailing over the corner of his mouth. He was wearing the remains of a striped checkout worker's uniform, complete with a grubby plastic name tag reading 'Bill Southerland'. Bill was by far the tallest vampire at maybe five foot. The others were a head shorter, on average. If you think that would give the STARS and advantage, think again. The smaller creatures could duck and weave avoiding the blows STARS strove to deliver. Chris later swore he saw one dodge bullets.

Bill Southerland approached Barry. Barry decided to abandon reloading for the moment and hit Bill squarely in the face. The nose splintered, sending cascades of a dark viscous liquid that could only be the vampire's blood over its face and body. Enraged, Bill roughly pushed Barry. Now Barry isn't exactly light. It is a well known fact that muscle is heavier than fat, and he was in good shape. Bill was over a foot shorter than him but with one shove sent Barry flying, pack and all, into a wall. That's approximately 210 lbs of flying weight, with only one push. He slumped at the bottom of the wall, motionless. The vampires crowded around him.  Being at the same height as these attackers clearly wasn't safe. STARS focussed their efforts on clearing the vampires away from their fallen team-mate.

(AN/ thank you Shady 777)

The area surrounding Barry clear Chris concentrated on shooting down Bill. Claire took up Barry's position in the formation. The vampires were too close for comfort now. In her peripheral vision Jill saw Chris lunge at the nearest and shoot it in what was presumably the stomach.

Or an area close to that which would cause incredible pain if shot.

Jill then had no time to watch. A vampire lunged for her, super quick. It bit her side and ripped a sizeable hole in her shirt and her flesh. She screeched in pain and pushed it away, unwittingly along with her gun. Blood seeped steadily down her side from the wound. 

Weakness and pain forced her to her knees. She watched the vampire as it came for another attack with a considerable amount of dread. It grabbed her chin and firmly pulled her head up, exposing her neck and leaving no room for resistance. The elongated canines looked very sinister when considered from Jill's point of view. She shut her eyes and winced in apprehension as those teeth came closer, only to find no climax but a loud BANG. She opened her eyes cautiously and saw the still form of the child who had attacked her.

Rebecca watched Jill carefully over the barrel of a smoking gun with her torch hooked in the crook of her elbow. _Wow, _Jill thought, _and there I was doubting her._ There was no time for any acknowledgement of thanks but a brief thumbs up before Jill was brought back into battle. Lack of blood was making her woozy. Black spots danced in her vision as she fought her opposition forcefully. Jill hadn't been a Green Beret and learnt nothing; if she knew anything about sparring, it was how to fight dirty.

And Rebecca wouldn't have been the medic if she didn't know anything about healing. She had two people in dire need of attention; Barry and Jill. And no time to see to them. Jill's legs gave way and she crumbled to the floor again. Rebecca rushed to her side and joined the fight from there.

The vampires had some of the same weaknesses as zombies. For one, destruction of the head was an effective way of killing them, and this could be done with an accurate head shot. The difference was their height and swiftness added to the lack of light, now Rebecca was fighting she couldn't hold the torch, which made it near impossible to get an effective _shot_. No one was going to risk firing in case they hit a team mate. In this particular situation allies were a hindrance. But hopefully not a fatal one.

Rebecca used all her skill to avoid being bitten or badly injured. Survival became a dance of flying fists and gnashing teeth. Unfortunately, her strength was not enough to severe one's head from one's body. The vampires wearied easily. Actually, they didn't. Their speed just fell with time until it reached some point and levelled off. Apart from that, the fight was still as brutal and dangerous as it had been at the beginning. The vampires had some brilliant endurance that allowed them to continue an assault doggedly. When the STARS inevitably wearied, it was all over.

All over. _At least either way I won't have to listen to that f@#$king laughter anymore…_

***end chapter~

So what did y'all think? My first fight chapter. Okay, so I skipped some fighting but you can fill in the 'fight-holes' for yourselves, right? I know, another cliff-hanger, but what did you expect?

Well, I sort of suck at action fights cos I run away from school fights like a big nance. I do kick A at verbal abuse fights though.

REVIEW PLEASE! (Darada darada DA! duhdada DAH!) *dances*


	14. Survival

Disclaimer: Read Chapter 1. However, in this chapter I have modified a line from the very depressing poem 'Apple Raid', the name of the poet escapes me. Can anybody tell what the quote is? I'm going to borrow one of Zarbok's lines. (thank you!) I also forgot to say that Rosanna is indeed based on someone with the same name. I think that's about it.

Hope everyone had a happy Christmas! Anyone lucky enough to get snow? The plan for me was changed; instead of meeting at the beach, my house was spammed by relatives. *sigh* Still, lot's of food left over! ;)

Peanutbuttersunshine: *blows kiss* You know you love me. Really. I love you too. Merry Christmas, and thanks for boosting my review numbers! ^_^

Rosanna: There. Your own mention in a disclaimer. Do you feel proud?? ^_^ And you told me YOURSELF you were reading this, so using my superior psychic skills I COMMAND you to review!

Zed: here's more! Thanks for reviewing!

Zarbok: I'm stealing one of your lines! Hope you don't mind! *gives a triple hamburger* Enjoy! Aw, I read your review. *tears come to eyes* You're so nice! THANK YOU! *sniffs and begins bawling* And yes, I have read The Legacy of the Ashfords, A New Tide and Crimson Africa, and look forward to reading more of the talented Shady777's work. (Do you know I was reading her story when I began this and thinking about how I wanted to harvest some of her talent when I got a review from her??? It was like, fate)

Shady777: I've had trouble with the review system too. Still, seems to work on the second go. Thanks for answering all my random questions!  Helps to keep my story more relevant and true to the games (I hope..) Glad that my fight sequence was sort of believable, and congrats for having an imagination unsullied by TV! Aw, thanks for the e-mail, but I already know all I want to about PBS and was eagerly awaiting the review I knew he would, eventually, give me. Luckily for me, it sucked. So yeah, no problemo, but THANK YOU!

Arch: Thank you for reviewing! You like my style? Omigod, thank you!

Whoa matey, that was a long AN. Anyway, on with the show!

Chapter 14: 

Wesker followed the scent of the vampires, desperate to find somewhere to start a fire. Hopefully he could follow the trail to the lair, or something similar. He zoomed along the sewer tunnel, hoping to reach this lair before the scent was lost among the stench of the sewers.

He didn't wait to hear the gunfire start. If STARS was involved in a fight they would either kill the vampires or be killed by them. Preferably the former, because then Wesker could kill the STARS and be rid of two annoyances. Either outcome did not worry him unduly. The 'passive vampires' appeared to be wary of his skill, and seemed to be anxious to avoid a confrontation.

(AN/  ;)  )

Wesker soon found himself progressing through a labyrinth of side channels that led away from the main river of filth. These tunnels were slanted, leading into a deeper and older area of the sewers. The walls were still brick and grimy, but were lined with pipes and plumbing. There was a thick layer of undisturbed dust on the tops of the horizontal piping but the 'floor' was clear.

How very intriguing.

***

Claire was disheartened by the fighting. It took all her strength to avoid being bitten, leaving none for an attack. Chris was taking the most vampires down. He seemed to have established a rhythm and dance that varied only slightly for each vampire. Guns had long since been abandoned in this particular match and only Chris had the strength to severe the spinal column.

Rebecca, Claire noted, was becoming increasingly flustered. She couldn't spend a moment helping her fallen team-mates for fear of becoming fallen herself, which was extremely easy to become. Her reflexes were getting slower and she moved increasingly sluggishly.

Claire decided to try her brother's way. She ducked and weaved and formed a rhythm of her own. Soon she had established a system with Chris, where she would distract and weary a vampire and then Chris would dispatch of it. So far, the vampires hadn't caught on to the plan. _Guess they're not as intelligent after all._

Due to Chris's brawn, only two vampires remained. Claire saw her brother give a grin reminiscent of the vampires themselves. It was somewhat disconcerting to see.

With a nod to Rebecca, Claire set off to distract the second vampire while Chris took care of the first, leaving Rebecca free to attend to Barry and Jill.

Jill had lost a lot of blood. She was barely conscious and her eyes were heavily hooded. Rebecca was concerned that the virus could have infected her comrade, having no experience with the spread of this vampirism. She tinkered in her pack and did all she could to stop the bleeding. She finished making a tourniquet and went to check on her other friend.

Barry was better off. He had an impressive collection of scrapes, bruises and cuts, but he would live. Maybe with a slight concussion, though. To Rebecca's relief, there were no broken bones. Apparently being flung into a wall and attacked by vicious midgets wasn't as deadly as one would've thought.

Strange to think that these _things _were only children when their 'transformation' occurred. Stranger to think that the murderess responsible for it would never be put to justice. And even if she could be, what punishment could be given that would repent for her crimes? Death had become, in Rebecca's professional opinion, a friend. _(Just not a friend who's house I want to go to yet, she added mentally.) _

It was something Rebecca preferred not to think about because it inevitably led to thinking about the meaning of life and whether there really were ANY gods and that sort of thinking always resulted in her having a headache the next morning. Luckily, there were more pressing matters at hand. Like saving her comrades. There was little she could do with her small medi-pack for Jill; she needed hospital care. Neither could she do much for Barry, who was beginning to stir.

"Whaa-? What did I drink last night? Note to self- find out what it was and NEVER drink it again. Hang on, this isn't my house…" Images of the night's doings swept back to him. "Oh… brilliant. What happened?"

"You were knocked out by being thrown into a wall. By the vampires. Are you feeling alright?" Rebecca went through basic checks on Barry to make sure he was in no immediate danger. Satisfied with her findings, she helped him into a sitting position and went to Jill.

"What happened to her?" Barry asked, holding his head and feeling a little dizzy.

"She was bitten in the side. Mass blood loss. She'll need hospital care, and a lot of rest. We need to get her out of here as soon as possible."

The Redfield siblings chose this moment to grace the others with their presence. Chris 'flumped' ungracefully onto the floor beside Barry. Rebecca scuttled over and began dabbing at a large cut on his forehead, which had bled heavily and was now beginning to 'weep'. Chris waved her away irritably, insisting he was fine, as did Claire. Rebecca returned to Jill's side, feeling utterly inadequate.

Rebecca brought the others to speed on Jill's condition. Jill herself rocked slightly from her position near the tunnel wall, mouth slightly open and dripping blood. Claire winced in sympathy. Rebecca whispered continuously to the other in an effort to keep her conscious. So far, it was working, much to everyone's relief. If she went to sleep, Jill might not wake up.

Chris absently raised a hand to examine the damage of the cut. A vampire had produced a rock from God-knows-where and got in a good shot. He immediately wished he hadn't touched it. "Ow! The only way we know to get out of this place is through that storm-water drain. Which is very far off."

"Don't be stupid, Chris," Claire snapped, "There are heaps of ways out. We've probably passed some and not even noticed. This _is _a sewer after all. What about manholes, and things like that?"

"Be that as it may," said Barry in a voice that could freeze hell, "Jill doesn't have time to waste searching for another exit. One of us will double back and take her to the hospital. And no Rebecca," he silenced her as she began to volunteer, "we can't send our medic off at a time like this."

"I'll do it," Claire proposed.

"It'll be dangerous for only one of us to go," Chris objected, "what if there are more vampires?"

"I'll pray there aren't any. And if there are, I'll run like hell. Besides, I _can use a gun, y'know."_

Barry nodded tiredly, taking command of the STARS. "Right Claire. Got a torch? Good. Take Jill and go. Jill?"

She focussed hazy eyes more-or-less in his direction. "Hmm?'

"Do you know what's going to happen?"

"'s"

"Good. Well, I guess you better get going Claire. The only was out we know is marked in white chalk, so follow that back to the surface. "

Claire nodded and bit her lip. She gave her brother a friendly slap on the shoulder and Rebecca a quick hug before hooking an arm around Jill and pulling her upright.

"You don't have to do this," Barry reminded her.

Claire looked at each of her team-mates in turn, finishing with a glance at Jill. "I can do this." Supporting Jill and half dragging her along, Claire headed back the way she'd come.

"Right," said Barry, "let's get moving."


	15. Arguements

How is everyone today? Good, I hope! Thanks for all me reviews! *feels like review queen*

Peanutbuttersunshine: I have no idea whether you're taking the piss or not, but what the hell, thanks for your review!

Cass: Thank you for your review! But please don't spam my review section with too much stuff like that (though I do greatly appreciate it) That's just he works.

Shakahnna: Squee! Thanks for your review! REVIEWS! I feel so privileged! Glad you like the way I write Wesker; it's a bit different from everyone else's way! I'm attempting to read your story but the chapters are so mightily long it'll take me a while to get anywhere!

RE Lady: Wow! I'm glad to hear from you! Hope you new laptop's groovy! (and you like where I've taken this story!)

Shady777: I like your sentence MUCH better than mine! *looks mildly jealous* *tries to stuff Monster of Repetitive Names in a Shoebox* I'm not sure if I'm getting anywhere here…. But hopefully I'll be able to control the said demon if not destroy it completely! Hope you can keep picking things like that up for me, I find them annoying in other's work…(Jeez, I'm such a hypocrite!)

Well, here we go! Have been focussing mainly on STARS as of late, so here's a bit on the others. Just a favour, cos I don't know how obvious I made it in this chapter, all this stuff about glass is linked to what Ian 'thinks' in the first paragraph. Hope it makes sense! 

Chapter 15:

Ian shivered at the sound of shooting. Ben looked as if he wanted to turn back. _Why he'd want to do that I have NO idea… then again, Ben's always been big on chivalry and stuff like that. Must be too much TV… Ian tried to smile at his friend and was rewarded with a scowl the size of Kentucky._ It's going to be like walking on glass to avoid an-all-out war with him tonight.__

"Come on," Rosanna begged, "we've gotta get out of here!"

She was forced to push, bully and beg to get her friends down the sewers. They were weary from the day's slog, shock and sadness. The group moved sluggishly despite her efforts.

"We should be there helping them," Ben said suddenly. "We keep leaving them to do the hard work."

"That's their job," said Rosanna shortly. Even a benevolent spirit gets irked _sometimes. Ian's sharp intake of breath did nothing to calm her down. "It's their choice. Besides, they know what they're doing and can do it better without us. In this particular situation, we'd just be in the way. Personally I think I'm too shell-shocked to be of any real use."_

"I know exactly what you mean," Sena replied, slowing from a jog to a crawl. "This… it's just… _wrong._ I can't even describe it. And then I feel sorry for myself and remember what happened to Celia and how the STARS must feel 'cos they had to kill her and…. I can't stop thinking what are we going to tell Celia's family, and what the reaction will be. All I want to do right know is go-"

"-home to Mommy?" Ben suggested scathingly.

Ian muttered something close to "and now the glass shatters and is strewn over the ground". He was duly ignored.

"Daddy, actually. My parents are divorced. What's with you Ben? It's not _my fault you're useless down here."_

"At least I _want_ to be helpful! All we're doing is running away scared, and a fat lot of good that's doing for _them."_

Ian cleared his throat. "Let the glass-walking begin."

"Huh?"

"Give it a break Ben. You've been all sullen for ages. We _are running away scared, mainly because they don't __want us to be there. Like Roz said, we'd just get in the way. Just focus on surviving for the moment, and-"_

"-and leave them to- what? Not survive? You're a wimp, Ian. An utter wimp. Moron," Ben added as an after-thought. 

Ian sighed slightly. _He's just irritated, that's all. Let it slide. Keep on walking on that broken glass, that's right…._

Rosanna rubbed her temples vigorously. "Stop it! We are all on the same side here, capeesh? That means, we help each other, not fight each other." She turned to Ben. "I know you feel inadequate. We all do. But they asked us to get out of the way and we're going to do it. So, MOVE!"

_Sheesh! What's with everybody today? That reminds me…_

"Ian," she hissed, "what's the time?"

"Uhh…" the luminous numbers flickered briefly over his face, "1:30. Ay em."

_Half-past one! Only? That's what….six hours? How in hell did all that's happened fit into six hours?_

The couple exchanged knowing glances, sharing a common thought.

Ian sidled up to his girlfriend's side and gave her free hand a gentle squeeze. "We'll get out of here sooner or later. Sooner, if we can avoid fighting with Ben."

"Why's he so upset about this?" she whispered back.

"He hates feeling useless. Especially since his brother was put into hospital. Maybe he has security issues?"

"Well, whatever. Let's just get the hell outta here."

"Agreed."

~*~*~ Fine au chapter

Hmm, my French sucks. What I was trying to say was 'end of chapter', Don't know if I got even close, but let's pretend I did. A bit on the short side, but I thought you might want to know what's happening to them.

I know, Ben's 'irrational response' isn't exactly believable, but if you remember, before he even went into the sewers, I was trying to make it seem like he… I dunno… blamed himself a bit for his brother's condition and felt…well….useless. I hope it worked, even _slightly_. And I'd been ignoring Rosanna's and Ian's relationship since…. The second chapter? Something like that. So today was the day I remembered it. Lightens the mood or something ay? Luckily I'm not gonna turn this into a romance, because I couldn't write one if it was ad-lib and I don't really like romances anyway. So there you go.

REVIEW please! Need incentive?....

Wesker, baking: I think these ginger-bread men will be ready for the next chapter…. Any volunteers for the eating of?

Rosanna: I thought you were on strike.

Wesker: Yeah, but then Shady Trip. 7 finished her story so I have nothing to live for 'cept baking.

Rosanna: Oh….

Wesker: I am so much better at cooking than my son as written by her genius.

Rosanna: I see.

Wesker: Indeed. Anyone wanting gingerbread men? Anyone? I think Zarbok indicated an interest before….. Oh well, I might have to eat them all by myself….


	16. Discovery

Hi all! Thanks for reviews! Hope you all had a groovey new year and didn't make any stupid New Year's Resolutions.

Arch~ hehe, I know who you are now! *gives suet pudding* I don't think you like these puddings but I had one extra. Thank you for all your help and *participation* in the development of this story! Hehehe, sometimes I make myself laugh! *laughs hysterically*     *nobody else joins in* Well, _I think it's funny._

Arch: (side whisper) _I don't think they get your meaning._

Sych: *pout*__

Shady777~ he can take lessons! *gives gingerbread man* Thanks for all the reviews and advice! I hope that Monster is still under control in this chapter!

Zarbok~ *gives entire tray of cookies* I got Wesker to bake some more, so you can be as greedy as you want without feeling guilty! Thank you for the review, it's good to hear from you again!

So, here's more writing! Hope ya like it!

Chapter 16: Discovery

Claire half helped and half dragged Jill down the sewers, skirting the area where Celia had been shot. For obvious reasons she didn't want to venture in that mineshaft again. 

It was funny how fast you could move when you knew the way and a friend's life depended on your haste. They were moving down the path at twice the speed with which they had come up it _and s_he was concentrating on keeping Jill conscious. To do this, Claire tried to talk to her and keep her interested in her surroundings. Unfortunately interesting conversation topics are hard to come across when you're tired, desperate and scared, so Claire's ramblings were mostly morbid.

Jill herself struggled to keep awake. Muzzily she knew her life depended on staying conscious; she had learnt about blood-loss along with hypothermia in her basic STARS training because 'you never knew what could happen' as Captain Wesker had said. It's funny, but she sometimes thought of Wesker as two different people, her Captain and the evil doctor. Maybe it was just because he was a damn good actor, but she had two very contrasting images of the man.

Claire mainly talked about how when she got out of here she was _never going to go _anywhere_ near a sewer again. "And there I was thinking I was going to make some headway into this whole viral corporation thing and then __bamf. I'm back in the sewers in a small town. Not far from where I started. It's just depressing."_

Jill wouldn't have answered this even if she could've. She didn't really have much to say. As it was, black spots danced in front of her eyes and bile burned her throat. She could feel her fragile consciousness slipping through weakened fingers. And she was determined to keep a firm hold on it.

***

Wesker proceeded at a wary pace. According to the pipes the floor should've been coated in dust, but it wasn't. And floors don't sweep themselves. The only conclusion he had at the moment was that the tunnel was frequently used and therefore the dust didn't have a time to settle. He found it hard to picture a 'vampire' sweeping.

'Hard' meaning virtually impossible. As it was, Wesker had a very under-used imagination. For an example, he was already beginning to think of this virus as the 'V-virus' and was very proud of this accomplishment. _It covers Vampires and also suggests a link to the T-Veronica Virus. I must get a sample of it. All in all, he was very pleased with himself for thinking it up._

Wesker polished his glasses on his shirt quickly to remove a light film of dirt. How his glasses remained intact and on his face through the night's proceedings was a mystery, but he did not stop to question it. It was part of the strange phenomena that occurred around Wesker, and he took it for granted.

Replacing his shades, he continued at a slower pace through the channel. _Not much to see down here. Once you've seen one filth-encrusted tunnel you've seen them all. The pine-fresh scent still lingered._

***

Sena was still smarting over her 'confrontation' with Ben. _How dare he bring up my parents so? How dare he! Luckily for her, Rosanna was the one leading the way, so she didn't have to worry about tripping and falling into something… unpleasant. Such was her distraction that it took her some time for her senses to finally communicate with her brain._

"Hey! Can anyone else smell pine-fresh?"

***

Wesker's steady pace eventually brought him to a set of double doors. Usually he wouldn't have spared them a second glance. After all, how many times had he walked past such doors since he turned eighteen? Then again, how many times had he walked past such doors in uninhabitable sewers?

The smell of pine-fresh cleaner was undoubtedly strong. He studied the doors thoughtfully. They were apparently solid and made of some sort of metal alloy. A thin reflective strip ran horizontally over both doors just above the handles.

The handles themselves were terribly dusty. Apart from that, they were large and squarish, and had a long metal pole slotted through to keep them firmly shut. There was no doubt about it; these were definitely doors to keep something out, or in. But obviously they had to fulfil failed this particular requirement

Below the handles the doors were twisted and broken. The metal had been pushed towards Wesker, forming a hole that a child could easily fit through and signifying that it (the hole) had been made from the inside out. He gave a silent sigh and crouched down to examine the other side of the door. He could see a tunnel, devoid of any vampires.

Convinced that nothing was going to attack him while he was vulnerable, he squeezed through the gap. The cloth on his shoulder caught on the twisted door and ripped. Wesker cursed. Apart from this minor incident, he made it through the thick doors rather comfortably.

He hauled himself to his feet and dusted off his cloths. "Damn doors," he muttered, inspecting the damage done to his shirt. "My favourite shirt too."

He didn't mention that he had a whole wardrobe full of similar ones. Possibly another identical shirt. But that wasn't the _point_. "I am going to force HCF to pay for another shirt. Two, if I can wangle it"

Disgruntled, he examined his surroundings.  This corridor had no plumbing and a distinct lack of open sewerage. Instead of being brick, the walls were cement and the floor was painted. Wesker suspected red, but red was a hard colour to distinguish from black at night and he was still having trouble adjusting to his 'night-vision'. If asked, he would have said the colours were 'all fuzzy'.

Luckily no one did ask, so he didn't have to embarrass himself by using the word 'fuzzy'. That would do nothing to improve his reputation. 

He cast a gaze back on the doors he'd just come through. The looked like they should have 'warning', 'bio-hazard' and 'no trespassing' signs on them. Because of the notable absence of such signs Wesker doubted it had any link to Umbrella or HCF or any other viral company. Not that it wasn't possible they had been omitted on purpose, of course.

Well, whatever. He couldn't really be bothered finding out more. If there was a nice plaque that said: made by ____, he would dutifully remember the knowledge and report it back to the headquarters. If there wasn't, he'd be damned if he searched for the answer and would instead conveniently forget about ever stumbling upon this place.

He wasn't in a particularly good mood. 

~~*~~

Finished chapter 16! YAY! Look at me go, that's three chapters in … four?.... no three…. A short time anyway! Lol!

I'm running out of baking ideas, so unless you have any requests I'll give you my favourite from now on. Lemon Merringue Pie! Mmmm, pie. Wait, I can't give this away! Oh, what to do? ^_^

*sigh* sometimes I think I have far too much spare time *sighs again* I mean, look at me. I'm learning virtual baking from Wesker!!

Review Please!


	17. Prayer

A rather crummy day at the mo' so I had no excuse not to finish this chapter. So there you go. I guess I could say that avoiding boredom is much of my inspiration for writing this story. ^_^   Weird.

Where the HELL are my reviews? (excluding Shady777 and Arch of course) I feel rather unhappy when people don't review for me!!!!

Shady777: of course you may have a cheesecake! *gives the food* Actually, I can't stand pine-fresh cleaner, so I use lemon. When I have to. I can make people laugh? COOL! Thank you for being so constant in reviewing.

Arch: Thank you for reviewing and bringing my numbers to a square total. How thoughtful of you, even if I had to pester you to review! ^_^ You may have a bottle of coke for your efforts. *gives ice-cold bottle* Enjoy!

*glares at the distinct lack of reviews* 

Chapter 17: Prayers

Rosanna sniffed the air dubiously. "Umm…. I don't smell anything that even _vaguely resembles pine-fresh. I do smell al lot of other cra- I mean, stuff- though."_

Ian followed suit. "I think I can, but it's _very_ faint. Maybe a bottle of cleaner or something. Why?"

Sena gave a shrug. "I just thought it was interesting," she said. "Do you think the others will be coming soon?"

"If they're not dead," Ben muttered darkly.

Sena rolled her eyes at his attitude. She could understand it, but they had little choice. "They're experienced in this sort of thing. And they wanted us out of the way. Stop whinging already!"

He looked at her dourly. "And what were _you_ doing when you were with Wesker? How do we know that this isn't some part of an elaborate plot and you're going to leave us down here like you turncoat _cousin?"_

"Come again? My cousin isn't a traitor! And how dare you suggest that I would do such a thing? I was too tired and upset to be plotting _anything you little bas-"_

Rosanna sighed. They were falling to pieces. "Guys, let's not accuse anyone of anything, okay? You're arguing is getting on my nerves."

Sena pouted. "But he-"

"Yes?"

She pouted some more. Rosanna gave a smirk of grim satisfaction. "You'd make a good teacher, Roz" Ian mumbled, keeping his grip on her hand. She pretended not to hear.

***  
Barry felt sick. Rebecca had declared him 'alive to kick the cr*p out of all vampires', but he suspected that was only because he hadn't been entirely honest when answering her questions. In truth, he _did have a headache, and he _did _feel sick and tired. But he wasn't going to admit it, not if it meant abandoning his friends when they needed him._

The sound of his shoes on the floor made a squelching sound as he lead them on, holding the torch ahead of him like a dog on a leash.

'Friends'. An odd choice of words, as Rebecca was barely older than his eldest daughter and Chris was several years younger than him. _To hell with it, he thought, _these people have trusted me, helped me and saved me. And I them. I think that counts as 'friends'.__

_Squelch, trudge, trudge._

If anything, they were close. Only those involved with Umbrella and the viruses could possibly understand the feeling of fellowship that was shared, each knowing the other _knew_ how depressed and 'alone' the memories could make them feel. They shared the common belief that Umbrella needed to meet its timely demise soon, and would help it do so.

_Trudge, squelch, trudge. _

Sometimes though, Barry felt alone, even when they were there with him. He began to wonder if there was any point in fighting the multi-million corporations who had links all over the world. Umbrella especially could not be easily destroyed. Often he thought this 'war' to be useless. In other words, he became heartily depressed.

In such a state of mind, it was easy to slip up and come home in a six-foot box. Barry would not let himself do so. He couldn't bear the thought of leaving his friends to die with him, nor did he want to picture his family learning of his death.

_Trudge, trudge, squelch._

But in a way, he was dead. _Like my soul has been destroyed…_

"Umbrella has the Midas touch; it turns everything it touches into zombies."

"What was that Barry?" Chris asked, confused and shaken out of a reverie.

He blinked. He hadn't realised he'd spoken aloud. "Nothing, just something I read in an Umbrella employee's journal, back in the mansion. I guess I really never understood what the guy meant, until…"

"…now?" Chris ventured.

"Until Celia," he said bitterly. Chris shifted uncomfortably while he walked. "I feel as much of a casualty of Umbrella as Celia."

"Are you _sure you're alright, Barry?" Rebecca asked worriedly. _

He sighed heavily. "I feel like I'm having a mid-life crisis. The world's falling to pieces and there's nothing I can do to stop it. I just wish-"

He didn't finish the sentence and he didn't mean to. The others knew exactly what he meant, and couldn't put it into words themselves. It was part of the change Umbrella had wrought in them and bonded them together.

"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they shall be satisfied."

Barry looked at Rebecca in surprise. "Is that a prayer?"

Rebecca gave a half nod. "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the Children of God…." She kept walking, but sighed a little. "Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and all utter evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in hea'en. Amen."

Chris paused for a moment before saying a low "Amen,"  probably thinking of Jill.

"What does that last bit mean?" Barry asked.

"It means not to worry when people scorn you and throw evil comments and such in your direction as long as you are holding true to what you believe in, because that will reward you more than all else. More or less," Rebecca said, with a slight shrug.

_Evil comments and such… how about evil in general? Does that mean that I will be at peace if I 'hold true' to fighting against the evil of Umbrella? Why not? It's the least I can do. Or I can face Celia's parents and tell them I pulled the trigger on their daughter, because if I don't help to stop Umbrella, I'm helping them to kill other innocents._

_I don't want to be that man. The man who backs out on people when they need him._

_I can help people be doing what I have to. And then maybe I will be able to feel some safety when I'm at home with my family…_

_Maybe I can have a normal life again…_

_Maybe…. That can be my 'reward in hea'en'._

"What's the name of that prayer, Rebecca?" he said aloud.

"The Beatitudes."  
  


_The Beatitudes. I must hang a copy of that prayer on my wall when I get home._

***

Right, done. A bit cheesy, granted, but I wanted to show what Barry was feeling. In a word; depressed. And I'm going to back up what Rebecca said in the next chapter so don't worry about the seeming randomness.

Belated disclaimer: I hardly think it's possible to own a prayer, but~ I didn't right the Beatitudes. It's old. Older than I am. So how could I?

REVIEW TIME! (please??)


	18. Developments

Disclaimer: one of the lines in this story is from the immensely popular Discworld series. (the name of the exact book escapes me like many other things that probably shouldn't). As such, I didn't write it, just borrowed it.

I'm going away for a week~ to the sunny Sounds ^_^~ and as such I'll be sunbathing and swimming instead of being on the internet. Maybe with my friend the slavedriver :) there I'll write another chapter. After all, I _do_ have ten hours of travelling!!

Arch: *sigh* I can't be bothered saying this again. I write in sections, update faster, ideas appreciated. Is that it? ^_^ I'll need your dramatic input V. soon!

Shakahnna: Thank you so much! I love the way you write Wesker too! 

Ramen: Youbetcha I'm demanding reviews! I seem to get results when I do this, so there you go! Go your stories! Loving them!

Right, I got the mandatory three reviews, so I can post the next chapter!!

Chapter 18:  Developments

Claire felt her strength fading away. She adjusted the deadweight that was Jill and continued on. _Deadweight?__ I certainly hope not!_

"We're almost there," she muttered, "I don't know how long it took us to get to where we were but the way back is certainly faster. Good thing we took that short-cut, eh?"

Actually, Claire had been terrified by the short-cut. She hadn't known what way to turn or even how long she'd been on it. BY some twist of fate, it turned out that for most of the night, STARS had been walking round in loops, and that this tunnel that she chanced upon was an almost direct route. 

"Lucky for us, we glimpsed one of Rosanna's chalk arrows. Thank God for that! Who knows where we would be now if we hadn't seen it…" she shuddered.

Jill gave a slight cough and moan. She seemed to be slightly better than before, but her eyes were unfocussed and when she spoke her voice was slurred and drunken. Claire had stopped supporting her as she wlaked some time ago and had been  carrying her in a fire-man's lift. Now, Claire's arms protested at the treatment, so they were back to walking together. The progress was slow, slower than Claire carrying her.

_Migods__, it's a good thing I went to that gym like Chris suggested or I would'nt have been able to carry her so far._

"'air?"

"What?"

"Don' le' me 'come one ovem."

She mentally translated Jill's slurred sentence. _Don't let me become one of them._

"Of course not. You're not going to. We're going to destroy the virus population and then you can marry my brother and do all those things you've always wanted to do."

Jill seemed to laugh. "'ow? Oo don en ave a plan to git rid ovem."

"We'll think of something, Jill. Everything will turn out fine. I'm certain of it."

"'y doo ink esker's 'ere?"

_She must be feeling much better to be able to talk to me! She's gonna be okay, oh thank god! Thank you, thank you thank you!!_

"Maybe his new company's involved in it. Do you think Victoria Arben Reeves is really responsible for this?"

"'dunno. M so tired."

"Where almost there. Everything'll be fine."

" 'ndee?"

"Indeed." 

***

Rebecca remembered all the times she'd said that prayer. As Barry told them to 'move faster' and she broke into a run, she remembered saying that prayer at church, at home and even at school when things were really bad. And things usually were bad.

The little genius. The one who managed to graduate from university when all others her age were finishing high school. The one who was spoken about by neighbours; 'Oh, Majorie, it's that darling  Chamber's girl. Quite the young prodigy. Isn't she lucky?'

_NO. _She wasn't lucky, not as much as people thought. She had few friends her age, and none at the university. At high school she'd been teased dreadfully for being so young and so smart. And so being intelligent, she had passed by drugs and dreprssion and had instead turned to a religion that didn't punish people for having above-average intelligence.

At times she had been bullied and rejected, she'd memorised psalms, prayers and hymns. She found comfort in the old words of reverence.

But now, it had little relevance. Oh, the Bible said to have faith and that the good would be rewarded and the evil punished but religion caused more problems than it solved. And now, Umbrella and the other viral companies were doing something so evil it couldn't be punished, not by God, not by anyone.

_Genius has its limitations. Stupidity is not thus handicapped. _The words reformed in Rebecca's mind to say 'goodness has its limitations, evilness is not thus handicapped'. 

She looked at her companions. Barry ran like an elephant, heavily, ungracefully and with an expression that had been said to frighten tigers. It was a look that said very clearly 'if you don't get out of my way soon you'll be a red goo—oh, too late. Never mind'. Chris looked lost. Whatever he'd been thinking about what obviously grim, and she was willing to bet her house it was about Jill and Claire or Celia.

She wanted to ask them what they were thinking about, but realised that they wouldn't tell her and she probably didn't want to know anyway. Possibly something close to what she was thinking, which if edited carefully and sternly would be written by a genteel typist as '#@*& you, Umbrella.'

They were catching up with the teens quickly.

***

Rosanna cracked her knuckles, showing the makings of a true expert. The resulting 'Sprraack' echoed through the tunnels dramatically. Her hand had been numb from Ian gripping it so tight. Not that she had minded the gesture but sometimes it was nice to be able to use her hand.

To her satisfaction the shadows cast by her friends onto the walls shuddered as their owners cringed at her habit. For the moment silence reigned supreme. After the arguments had started up for round two and she'd gone completely ballistic, her presence was enough to quell any fighting.

Still, she followed in the rear, holding the torch, to make sure no more 'different points of opinion', as Ian had said, were going to occur. From this distance, only parts of the way ahead were lit up. _Serves them right, _she thought indignantly, _they can go blundering around in the dark._

Pine-fresh assaulted her nostrils. "What the hell is that smell?" she snapped, patience worn thin and angry at the wall in general.

"It's what I smelt before," Sena replied matter-of-factly. "I wonder what it is?"

"I want it to go away. It's corkscrewing right into my brain."

"It's been here for awhile."

If she had turned her torch slightly to the left, they would have seen an old security door that was sealed tightly shut, except for a child-sized hole torn through the metal.  Out of the torchlight there was an unnoticed movement. Two pinpricks on purple glinted amongst the shadows.

***

Wesker found at the other end of the corridor the smell had intensified. Pinefresh cleaner was obviously in abundant supply here. Creeping with the stealth of a cat, he approached an old, rusty object similar to a conductor's stand. Pasted to the top was a curled and faded note.

He unfolded it gently, blowing off dust in some places. A loopy hand had written this letter in utmost care. _For the comfort of Harold Thompson, Mayor of Brideswell, and his family, this facility has been…_ here the writing was smudged and the loops out of control. Even Wesker's eyes weren't good enough to decipher this writing. He skipped a couple of sentences, _…tation__ facitliy to be used in the event of the return of tuberc….. _

_Sounds intriguing.__ I wish this was more legible. He looked back at the yellowing paper, ready to read more, when a scratching alerted his senses. The noise was from a hole, similar to the one he'd squeezed through, in the wall. The smell of cleaner was overpowering to his sensitive nose. He gagged on it._

The scratching stopped and an inquisitive head appeared through the hole, baring sharp teeth. Wesker raised his heavy boot and brought it down hard. The bone crunched easily and  all sorts of unmentionable matter splattered the surrounding walls. Most of it, however, got on his trousers.

He lay flat on his stomach after several tense seconds, ignoring the gore of the late vampire except to scoop some up in a small container which he put in his bag. He could see no movement through the gap. After a moment's consideration, he ducked through the hole.

This room was clean. Wesker got a quick glimpse of his surroundings before he heard the quiet 'ahem.' He turned very quickly and saw the young sixteen year old woman watching him. She stood proudly in rags, albeit _clean rags, and smiled._

That is to say, her lips turned at the corners, revealing inch-long teeth.

**~**


	19. Party Dress

Hi, I'm back! Had a brilliant holiday and am now resigning myself to the fact that school will be cutting into my blob-out time and am not very happy about it. Not happy at all. Meh, stuff happens. So any writing for this I do will probably be during maths when I'm supposed to be learning the wonders of linear graphs and other such riveting things.  
  
Shady777~ I may begin calling you Shady Ashford too! Have I mentioned I am a devotee of the evil cliffhanger endings? I'm not sure if I resolve them satisfactorily, but hey, I try^_^  
  
Zarbok- that is so cool! I'm full of questions about your Four Winds Tribe! Congrats! I'm surprised (and honoured) that you took the time to read and review my story when so much exciting stuff was happening for you!  
  
TheBurninSamari- heh, I love your name! Thanks for reviewing! Omigod, you read my story in one go? Squee! Thank you!! I would love to have Wesker kick some ass, as you say, but I'm not good at writing that sorta thing so we'll see how it goes. I'll try to! As for your other request.*conspirital wink*..  
  
Arch: hah! You sound all intellectual in your reviews, but I know the truth! It's all the contacts, isn't it? If you wore your glasses you wouldn't be HALF as smart!!!!! Uh. anyway, thanks for reviewing and I'm glad you could believe what I wrote about Rebecca and do I smell burritos? I must investigate this further..*walks of stage*  
  
Chapter Nineteen: Party dress-(ing vampires)  
  
The scent of pine cleaner was so strong that it made Wesker's eyes water. On the upside, the floor was so clean you could perform surgery on it, if you so wished. The walls were equally clean, and the entire room was empty but for a heaped corner full of empty 'pino-cleen' bottles and the two figures.  
  
Wesker, eyes watering furiously, tried to appear menacing. The 'Look', as he called it, was hard to achieve when one's nose is being attacked by intense pain which causes one's eyes to weep. Needless to say, he failed and consoled himself by cursing his sensitive nose.  
  
The young girl bore a distinct resemblance to the late (hopefully late, anyway) Alexia Ashford, right down to that superior smile that graced her mouth. Wesker wouldn't have been surprised if she magically produced a golden goblet of blood and began to sip daintily from it.  
  
"You have caused much trouble for us," she said in a voice similar to any teenager. It was devoid of all Old English terms like 'thou' 'hast' and 'caus-ed'. Very un-Shakespearian and very disturbing.  
  
For an answer he glared stonily back at her. In the intensity of his glare he saw the small movement of the neck that indicated a change in stance. Because of this he was ready for the following attack which happened in milliseconds. One moment her hand was on her hips, the next it was on an upper-cut journey to his chin.  
  
A fist that would've taken his head off sailed harmlessly past his left ear. He caught the attached wrist and quickly twisted it until there was a large crack.  
  
The vampiress looked at her mangled hand and smiled sweetly. "I have a proposition for you."  
  
***  
  
"Hey!"  
  
From instinct, Rosanna's head jerked up to see what was going on. For her curiousity she was rewarded with a jarring crack to the head as it came in contact with the low ceiling.  
  
"Aargh, shite!" She rubbed at the spot tenderly. "Damn low ceilings to chocolate-less hell."  
  
"A formidable curse indeed," Ian replied dryly.  
  
"Who's damn idea was it to go into the crawl space anyway?"  
  
"Yours," Sena said. "I believe you said to do it or, and I quote, 'there'll be hell to pay'."  
  
"That," said Rosanna, "is beside the point. So. hey, what?'  
  
"I think I've found a way out of here, Roz," Sena told them. "Ben, can you pass me the torch, please?"  
  
The torch was relayed through the tunnel, from Ben to Ian, to Rosanna and finally to Sena, who turned it on and shone it at the walls. There was a sharp left turn, and then the tunnel opened into a larger cavern.  
  
"We're outta here," she whispered.  
  
Rosanna gave her friend a quick shove and then climbed out herself. Ian was slower, claiming to be stuck because of his lack of potbelly. It took some time, but he eventually managed to get himself theatrically out.  
  
"You had to be all dramatic, didn't you?"  
  
"'Course," he said, grinning.  
  
The three waited as the last, and surliest, member of their group came out. The light pack he'd been instructed to take was hindering Ben's process. With a team-effort, they managed to pull the bag off and drag it out of the crawl-space.  
  
Ben got himself into some weird and wonderful positions there, and it took him a bit to get untangled. Finally he managed to be facing the right way again. He was halfway out when he stopped abruptly.  
  
"What now?" Ian asked, helping his friend out.  
  
Ben seemed to be pulled back into the tunnel. His face was taut and drawn. "Something is on my leg. And it really hurts. Any help would be graciously accepted."  
  
The two girls rushed to Ben's other side. A tug of war ensued, with the teenagers making precious headway due to their opposition being lying down and unable to pull with all its strength.  
  
Ben fell to the floor with a loud thump. Bloody lines trailed from his upper calf to his ankle, made by some type of claw, or even strong fingernails. Attached to his ankle was a mottled hand, and attached to that was a three foot tall vampire wearing a party dress.  
  
Ben gasped as the creature released its hold on his ankles. More trails of blood seeped down to sully the floor as the callous vampire walked right over him to the others which posed more of a threat.  
  
They backed away, feeling guilty at leaving the fallen Ben prone to attack. Ian put the torch strap between his teeth and desperately tried to remember self-defence classes from school. His memory failed to function.  
  
When they had backed into the wall and had no where to run, Ian reached the conclusion that something had to be done. With his hands free he grabbed the neck of the vampire and pulled it off the ground.  
  
Which was an incredibly idiotic thing to do.  
  
This, well brilliant as far as amateur fighting goes, did stop the vampire from being able to bite anyone but did allow it full use of its arms and the ability to flail its legs. Which it used to the full extent.  
  
Rosanna grabbed a flailing limb- a left arm, to be exact- and straddled it, desparetly recalling all those PE lessons she'd spent joking with Ian and Sena and the others. This was a more nasty move, not supposed to be used unless the situation demanded it. And boy, did it demand it.  
  
She straddled the arm as Ian was forced to lower the creature to the ground and pulled it up sharply till she heard a 'poip'.  
  
"Hot damn," Ian muttered, unable to restrain himself at any time from a smart remark, "remind me never to assault you in a dark alley, 'kay?"  
  
The vampire screeched as its shoulder was dislocated. The initial burst of pain over, the pale purple eyes narrowed into threatening slits. They focused on Rosanna, recognising her as the one responsible for the trilling pain in its shoulder.  
  
A normal human would have been severely dizzy, maybe even would've fainted. Then again, the party-dress-wearing vampire was not human, much less normal. It disregarded the pain and possible nausea, preferring to grab Rosanna's forearm.  
  
Being three-foot tall and attacking someone almost twice your height is not a wise tactical decision in anyone's book, as the vampire was finding out first hand. It was still making progress, but not as much as it would've wanted.  
  
Sena took this moment to deliver a forceful kick to the vampire's back. It is doubtful the kick caused much damage, but it did incense anger. The teenagers learned some very valuable information, which will be shared with you in the book Ian was considering writing. It is as follows;  
  
How to stay alive when attacked in the sewers: Page One, chapter heading: attackers.  
  
Don't try to do anything that will only increase rage instead of pain to your attacker. They're already angry enough. Don't encourage them.  
  
The vampire, incensed to the point it should be frothing at the mouth, went on a kamikaze mission of complete destruction. In the ensuing chaos, there was a total of three broken fingers (courtesy of Ian), a cut that bled heavily enough to be worrying (thanks to Rosanna) and. well, the others got off almost scott-free on account of Ben being on the ground and Sena behind the vampire. There was a general (and impressive) collection of minor cuts, scrapes and bruises.  
  
The brawl lapsed as the party-dress creature remembered Ben was still on the ground, leg bleeding heavily. You could almost see the cruelty radiating from the purple slits as it approached him.  
  
With one sharp, clawed fingernail the vampire drew a scarlet line over Ben's trembling clavicle to the jugular. Sena and Rosanna watched in horrified shock as the creature gave a hiss of anticipation and Ben shut his eyes tightly.  
  
No one expected the sudden movement from Ian. He brandished the torch and brought it down squarely on the vampires exposed neck. He must've used some force as the first and second vertebrae were crushed, severing the spinal column. The purple light faded to nothingness.  
  
The four were left in the darkness. There were gasps of pain and relief from all.  
  
"Ben! Omigod Ben, are you okay?" Rosanna said urgently.  
  
"Yeah, I'm. I'm fine. Just got a really bung leg at the mo'. Uh.Thank you, Ian."  
  
"Sena? Ian?"  
  
Sena answered, with a hint of shame, "Good."  
  
"Ian?"  
  
"Uh. both my hands are useless. I think something might be broken in my left, but the right feels crushed from impact with that bloody thing's neck. And, uh.." A sigh, "you're not going to like this but. the torch is broken. Absolutely shattered. Maybe that's one of the reasons my hand is so sore."  
  
"Okay, well if everyone's fine." Rosanna said thoughtfully, "does anyone have a torch left? That's mine broken."  
  
There were general murmurs of dissent and cursing as Ben and Ian rifled through their light packs and found a lack of torch or a broken bulb.  
  
"We'll just have to go on without then," Rosanna announced with a touch of dread. "Can you walk, Ben?"  
  
"Yeah, but, if it's not too much trouble."  
  
"Spit it out," Ian demanded.  
  
"Can I have a support crutch?"  
  
Ian gave a hollow chuckle and helped drag Ben up. Sena went on Ben's right side, shivering as claustrophobia regained a tight grip. In a rather painful tangle of limbs, the three hobbled after Rosanna, who still held a hand with a smudge of chalk to the wall, leaving a trail.  
  
"That was so cool back there guys," Sena whispered. "Like something out of a B Grade action-thriller movie."  
  
"Big budget?" asked Ian, always focussing on the arguably most important thing.  
  
"Definitely. It can pay us all compensation for injuries and trauma."  
  
"Bloody good."  
  
***~~~***  
  
I think this is one of the longest chapters I've written so far. Actually, chapter 8 is probably bigger. yep, it is. By a hundred words. But this one's more pages and takes up more space, so that's gotta mean something, right?  
  
Anyway, I think I might be writing some larger chapters from now on~ there's been a call for it from no one in particular *cough, Arch, cough*~  
  
Please read and review for me! I really, REALLY, love reviews! 


	20. Ambulance

To begin this chapter, I have to explain the use of _/slashes/. Like many other people on FF.net I have found whatever format I'm using doesn't like italics too much, but I'm still trying to use them. That's why they /_might/ _appear in slashes and italics, or just slashes. I'm pretty sure there's another web format that shows italics (it was working before) but I'm very good with computers so I'm going to let it lie until I can found out how to change it. Anyway, I'm back at school now so my updates will be even /__more/ sporadic than normal._

TheBurnin'Samuari~ Yay! Another review! And very little delay for it, too. I was just seeing what I had on my e-mail and BAM! Review alert the very next day. So yeah, I was psyched, like the name suggests. Aah, Ian got his broken fingers from 'ensuing chaos', I think (that is what I said, right?) Anyway, how /that/ happened is completely up to the imagination. LOOPHOLE! There's always one if you search hard enough!!! ^_~

OogieBoogie man~ I'm glad you like it this far! Thanks for the review!

Zarbok~ I'm honoured by every review, so I'll be honoured by yours if I wish! ^_^ I've also had a dislocated elbow, but that was in amateur gymnastics as a kid (my one weakness, curses!). Just riddle me this; did the other guy survive?  Anyway, Four Winds sounds cool, but I don't know too much about anything you tried to explain to me. *sigh* small town Oceania girl here, with enough knowledge to fill a teacup!

Shady777/heaven/Ashford~ Curiosity killed the cat (and satisfaction brought it back! But that's not the /point/) I'm glad you liked what I did as a kid-fight. I happen to know a Rosanna and she'da kicked my ass if I made her namesake look weak

Chapter 20: Ambulance

Rebecca squeezed into the crawl space. "It's a good thing Rosanna left chalk arrows or we'd never have found this route," she called back, shining her torch on the walls.

"We may have," said Barry doubtfully. He clambered in behind her. "Enough room for you too, I think Chris!"

Rebecca slowly made her way through the small enclosed space and wondered how on earth the teens managed to get Sena through here, what with the girl being claustrophobic and all. Must've been a bloody miracle.

_Don't swear, Becky, 'tis not Christian!_

"Quiet, Mom," she muttered under her breath. Why her mother's voice liked to distract her at crucial moments she'd never be able to find out. Her knuckles grazed lightly on the concrete as she changed her grip on the torch. Patterns of light changed like a demented kaleidoscope on the wall, less than two centimetres behind her. Speaking of tight... 

"Not being squeezed to death there, Barry?"

"Stop being smart, kid," he wheezed, slapping his hand against the sole of her shoe, "I can fit in her perfectly. It's like wearing a fricking straight jacket."

"How do you know what wearing a straight jacket's like, Barry?" Chris pondered.

Rebecca allowed herself a silent giggle before becoming serious again. A couple more steps and stops to check her grip on the flashlight and she would be out of the confined space. On one of her last 'grip-checks' she saw a fresh, dark stain. She swiped it with a forefinger and was unsurprised to find it wet. With some difficulty she shone her torch down the length of the crawl-space. Patches of the stuff, joined by streaks in between, outlined the path to the exit.

She sniffed gingerly at her finger but refrained from licking it. Considering the circumstances it was not sanitary and in any case it was a mistaken belief that tasting something automatically told you what it was. Take methanol and ethanol for example. Same taste, but you wouldn't want to be drinking the former, mistaking it for the latter. And if you found a streak of white powder, it _could be sherbet, or it could be arsenic. Want to lick it and find out?_

"Guys," she called softly, "I think I've found a blood trail. I'm going forward to check it out because quite frankly I don't have anywhere else to go. Should I turn the torch off?"

"No," Chris replied instantly. "If someone's there, they already know we're coming. And if it's a vampire-thingy then they'll be able to see us, light or no."

Rebecca gave a nod that Chris couldn't possibly have hoped to see and continued forward. She fancied she could hear the sharp intake of breath, the impatient hissed exhale with the slight whistle caused by long teeth. She had only been close to vampires very briefly but now, when faced with the whole experience again, could remember _everything in depressingly clear detail._

She pulled herself along with all the stealth she had available, uncomfortably aware that it wasn't much. Finally at the exit of the tunnel, Rebecca sat just behind the edge like a scared bunny-rabbit, too timid to peak out. Barry grunted impatiently and she decided it was time to move.

Cautiously she crept out, landing in a congealing pile of blood. There was a lot of it too, spread in puddles along the dusty floor. She sweeped the area with her torch, illuminating more signs of fighting and... There. Was that a vampire?

Rebecca approached it carefully, uploading her weapon and unlocking the safety as she did so. It didn't move. She heard the sounds of Barry struggling to get out the hole as she bent down to examine the creature. It wore a party-dress, now mauve with blood, which suggested that originally it had been cream, or at least off-white, in colour. The ragged remains of a silk sash were knotted around the creature's stomach.

It was very definitely dead. Not that this necessarily was a comforting thought, nor did it mean the thing would stay immobile. "I think we're safe for the time being."

"You think? You'd never make in command, Officer Chambers," Chris said as he fell out of the crawl-space with a graceless thud.

"Oh, that's okay sir, I have you to show me how I'd screw it up."

"Guys," Barry warned. "Wrong time, wrong place. And don't even think about saying 'double negative'. We have what appears to be a dead- meaning extinct- vampire there and a lot of blood. Which means more than likely the kids are in trouble."

Chris and Rebecca remained wisely silent and put any energy they had to talk with to running full speed after chalk-arrows. Barry snatched Rebecca's torch from her hand and was now in the lead.

The teens may have had a head start, and they may have been in good shape, but STARS had intense training to make them fitter, faster and more lasting than any high school sport player. Slowly it might be, but the three were catching up steadily. The blood was still warm.

Rebecca was very worried about the amount of blood there. She hoped, very fervently, that it was from all four kids, not one, which would mean no one was in danger of dying due to blood loss. If it was mainly from one person... well, that person would more likely than not be meeting up with Celia soon. Blunt, crass and accurate.

Chris was worried about everyone in general. He was worried about his sister, Jill, his present companions, and the four whose trail he was on. He was worried to some agree about Wesker. Not _for Wesker, mind you, __about Wesker, about what he could do that would endanger the people he was responsible for; his people._

_(One of the many reasons Wesker hated- to be accurate, detested- Chris was his unique ability to befriend anyone and then keep that friendship by projecting the air of safety, the belief that now, in Chris, the new friend would have some one to watch their back. There was no reason for this feeling. Maybe it was carefully grown in to be the essence of Chris. But Chris happy and Chris content meant everyone happy and safe.)_

Barry ran methodically, no thought spared for random musings. At the moment his world was full of very little; a white line of chalk to follow, a pounding in his ears as he ran, painful breathing and a searing pain in his shoulder. Whatever he'd done to it in the crawl-space had sent the fiery waves of pain back up. Dark shadows bustled on the edges of his vision, and it wasn't entirely from bad lighting either. The headache was back too, drilling somewhere between his right eye and temple.

So it was a weary and distracted group that followed the four teenagers. Possibly not the type of rescue team you'd want if you were in trouble. Then again, that's not to say the kids hadn't proven their ability to take care of themselves.

***

Claire gasped. "Jeez Jill. Ordinarily I wouldn't even consider calling you fat but _damn!_ I never knew 70 k' could be so heavy!"

The nearly unconscious woman made no reply, except for a slight quirking of the lips.

Up the steep incline and... Aha! The grating! "Check it out, Jill! We're there!"

The two burst through the gate that they'd come through several hours before. An excited murmur rose from the watching crowd. Women and men wrapped in blankets looked on curiously, breath rising in a fine mist, as Claire struggled with the door.

"Help me out here, damn you!" she screamed, furious at them for not having any common sense at all. "She's badly hurt and needs a doctor!"

For a moment the silent crowd stood motionless until a man stepped forward. He had a homely air about him, the man who had a wife and children waiting at home. Hooking a finger over the rusted hinge and a thumb underneath, he jimmied the door up till there was enough leeway to move the rusting iron.

Claire stumbled through, almost over balancing as Jill's trouser seat snagged on something. The 'family man' swiped two blankets from the crowd- you called tell by the protesting 'hey!'s- and wrapped Jill in one. He took her from Claire's side and offered her the remaining blanket. She took it gratefully.

With him carrying Jill, he led the way to the ambulance. A scrawny boy was wearing a sweatshirt five-times too big and a smile that seemed to big for his face, His body was still dirty, as was his hair, but his face was clean and he had a generally healthier appearance.

"Aaron?" Claire marvelled at the change in the boy.

He gave a bemused smile that, as he recognised who it was, seemed to grow and swallow his face. "It's you! Did you... did you find Celia?"

Claire hesitated, unsure what to say. "Yeah, in a way..." she hated herself for not being able to say it straight out and hiding behind the cover that it would hurt the boy.

"She was already dead, wasn't she?"

She was startled at the boy's intuition. "Yeah, but not much suffering for her," _that much is at least true._

"Ma'am?"

Claire swivelled round almost crashed headfirst into an ambulance officer. Green eyes, solemn and mirthless, regarded her sombrely.

"You are Miss Radcliff, right?"

"Redfield."

"Ah, yes. The lady inside was asking for you but we couldn't quite make out the name. Are you alright?"

"She's okay? She's talking?" Claire said eagerly, ignoring the question about her welfare.

"We have to be brief. Are /you/ okay, ma'am?"

"Uh... yeah," she said, mentally checking herself for any injuries.

"That's good to hear. Me and the boys are taking the lady down to the ER promptly. Will you becoming?"

"Yes, of course."

*

The inside of the ambulance was nothing exciting. All was clean and hygienic, except the sheet on the hospital stretcher that Jill was lying on. The rough blanket covered her lower legs from the knee down. A hand-operated oxygen pump was over her mouth and a man was working it gently.

From a distance she could hear Claire,_ /is she alright? When will we get to the hospital? How long will she need to stay there? / Her young companion sounded worried, but Jill couldn't tell what about. Not __her anyway, she was perfectly fine, apart from the slight underwater quality of her vision._

*

Claire couldn't tell in Jill had an anaesthetic in her system or was simply drowsy from blood loss. Her efforts to gain information had been futile, though she had continued to pester the officials until they threatened to throw her from the vehicle.

AS far as she could tell, Jill's condition was 'stable'. She needed care at the hospital for several things with scientific names that she couldn't understand and, when she had stopped pressuring them for information, the officials began asking /_her/ for information._

"Has she been conscious, for how long, how long ago? How much blood was lost? How were the injuries sustained?"

Those were just the easy questions, and Claire didn't know how to answer them. Then there were ones that she couldn't even begin to comprehend. She sighed, thinking it should've been Chris or Rebecca or Barry here in her place, being helpful and thus helping Jill.

But it wasn't any of them; it was her. So she searched her brain for anything she could say that wouldn't be too controversial. For example, what made this neck wound? Instead of saying teeth, Claire replied, something sharp. Very insightful.

***

Wesker regarded the vampiress in front of him. She put on an award winning smile and if you squinted, you cold /_almost_/ believe it was genuine.

"Why?"

An impatient hiss chipped away some of the credibility of her smile. "Because if you don't, I can see to it that you don't leave these sewers. At least, not in one piece."

"It's not very diplomatic to threaten people, Ms. Reeves," Wesker said deadpan, secretly enjoying the perk of frustrating a vampire.

"_/Arben/ Reeves," she muttered, rising to the bait. _

"Whatever. Y'know, I think it would be more fun if I just killed your deputies and let your secret become public knowledge."

The young girl that Ben might suspect to be Victoria gave a screech of impatience and leaped at the impudent man. "I have lived here for over one hundred years," she hissed in his ear, "I will not be ousted by a simpleton like you!"

Wesker decided to let the simpleton remark slide and endure being pinned down by this mere slip of a girl. Actually, and this was another thing he'd /_never/ admit, he couldn't move. This mere slip of a girl was pretty strong._

She went back to where she had been sitting. "Now, I would've had you killed before when you met my 'deputies' for a second time. But I decided I liked you, after how you 'defeated' my first team. And I grew curious, so I watched you for a bit, and then came back here, confident you would follow."

"That pine smell... that was you?"

"Not entirely. This room, too." She gestured with a mirthless smile to the empty cleaner bottles. "I lead a clean life among the filth. Anyway, I saw you, and then I knew..."

"What?" Wesker asked, uneager to indulge in mind games.

"Your virus. A less powerful version of mine, but more powerful than the diluted one I created for my followers. Didn't want a war for leadership did we? So I want your virus, and I want you to get these... policemen... out of my lair."

"And what will I get in return for this?"

"Safe passage through the sewers."

"That's a very small reward."

Victoria shrugged. "That depends on how much you like living Mr...?"

"Wesker. Dr. Wesker."

"Dr. Wesker. You may be able to beat some of my troops, maybe all of them, but you won't be able to beat me. I am, as the line goes, unbeatable."

Wesker allowed himself enough emotion to raise an eyebrow. _/Big claim/_


	21. Reunion

HI! I'm back! How are you all? Hope everything's groovey!

Shady777~I'll just put that name there for the moment! But rest assured that I mentally put all the aka's in too. ;) Anyway, what can I say? Thanks for your review! I thought it would be about time to show why Wesker don't like Chris (like we can't guess!!) so... I racked my brain and finally! I was hit by inspiration! But don't worry, I slapped it back! Um... sorry 'bout the randomness of this response. I got the idea from many places, so probably your ideas helped me out. Thank you! :) I told Victoria what you said...

_Victoria__: Pleas don't hurt me! I've just got a bad rep.!_

Mrs. Billy Coen~ *cough, cough* riiight...

Hehe~ hehehe right back at ya!

Zarbok~ You kicked his ass! YAY! *waves GO ZARBOK pompoms* *gulp* aw, come on! Self-diss jokes are funny, ie; I was lost in thought. It's very unfamiliar territory; I don't go there often. See? Funny! Well, maybe not. But I'll try to restrain myself if it pisses you off. Thanks for the review!

Theburnin'saumari~ hiya! Thanks for reviewing! I don't really mind the length of the review, as long as it's more than three words. Then it's good! Yes... the internet can be VERY evil... 

Chapter 21:

The darkness was thick and velvety, seeming to be a solid, living thing that extended through vast distances, never ending. It pressed against her eyes, her body, into her mouth, smothering her...

Sena shook herself. She fancied she heard her mother say _"/there's nothing there in darkness that isn't there in the light/". Steadying her grip on Ben, she pressed on, eyes searching the gloom._

Progress was slow, encumbered by the tendency to imitate a zombie and walk with hands outstretched in the hopes of avoiding going straight into a wall. Ben's inability to walk unaided also slowed the pace, though he was not to blame for this misfortune. For what seemed like millennia, they snail-crawled their way inch by miserable inch towards what was hopefully an exit.

The steady, dull thump of footfalls alerted them to approaching people. She heard Rosanna give a resigned sigh and shared it. There was nowhere to go, no way they could fight this newcomer, no way to outrun it. The only thing they could do was hope it ran past them, or was STARS. They hadn't seen STARS for age; hoped they were okay.

They slipped to the side of the wall, en masse. Dread and mind-numbing terror took a firm grip on every mind. Sena rolled her eyes skyward, praying for some divine miracle from her estranged deity; Lady Luck. A fickle female, if ever there was one.

It seemed the prayer was heard. Closer inspection showed it was indeed STARS. Well, some of them.

"Where's Jill and Claire?" Ian asked, concerned.

"Jill was in pretty bad shape, so Claire took her to the hospital. We haven't heard from them since," said Barry. "What about you guys? You all okay?"

For an answer, Ian and Sena manouvered Ben into the torch light. His left calf was wrapped in a micro-fibre towel from Sena's OE bag, the blue material stained a deep magenta. The right was a mess of blood and scratches, some of the gouges seeming to be down to the bone. Varying shades of crimson stained the untorn skin, creating a matted jumble of flesh, hair and blood.

Chris said some obscenities that fitted the occasion perfectly. "We need to get you out of here! Even I can tell that!"

Rebecca tried to do some standard checks but the grimace on Ben's face told her it wasn't worth it. He had to go to the hospital.

Several minutes later, when Barry had forfeited his jacket to be made into a make-shift bandage, they set off. 

"What way should we go?" Chris hissed. "Going back the way we came will take ages! But if we continue this way, finding an exit might take..."

"Forever," agreed Barry, "but like you said, if we go back the way we came we might meet more of those vampires and if that happens... we won't be able to win."

"So you agree to go forward?"

"Yes," Barry sighed. "I hope I'm not making a fatal mistake.

***

Victoria stepped out of her 'house' and lead the way through the sewers, fading into the darkness with such ease even Wesker, with his highly-tuned eyesight, had trouble telling the two voids apart, the vampiress and the empty space. She moved soundlessly and swiftly, the perfect predator. Then again, she'd had one hundred and fifty years to perfect it.

Behind her, Wesker tried to think of how to get himself out of this mess. At some time, and sometime soon hopefully, he had to destroy all the vampires, all things that could possibly expose the virus companies. Not that HCF really cared that much about Umbrella, but it's easier to destroy _/all/ incriminating evidence instead of sifting through it all and deleting what was.... unwanted._

Although... these new vampires could only expose Umbrella... if the T Virus leaked, it could be pegged as inefficient quarantine practices on Umbrella's behalf; it was, after all, credible enough.  And if Brideswell had to be bombed? So what? These people didn't mean anything to Wesker... not really. He could get his family, _/James'/_ family, out of the danger zone. And then... what?

The vampires would survive. The sewers went for miles, connecting with those of other cities and, eventually, other states. There could be vampires, not crocodiles, in the sewers _/everywhere/. _So his efforts might not 'eradicate the threat of exposure' there supposedly was here. But it would make him friends with some _/very/ influencial people. That is, of course, assuming that vampires are counted as people._

What had the big man said? _/this will be inconvenient, as far as our plans are concerned./_ What plans? What was Brideswell needed for? This virus, dubbed the V Virus, was probably already seeping to infect the world. And as Victoria said... no virus was strong enough to combat the undiluted V that she carried in her veins. Not even his. If he tried to beat her, he would get creamed. Even more than that, he would get _/cheesed/, _which is like being creamed except it lasts longer.

Nothing to stop him from going along with this plan of Victoria's. Sena and her friends were not a threat, they would run during the fighting and be safe, leaving only STARS to be killed . Nothing at all...

***

James sat in the hospital, waiting for news of the young women he'd helped to the ambulance.  Sometimes he just wanted to leave Brideswell. He hadn't wanted to live here to begin with; this was his wife's, _/ex-wife's/,_ hometown. He was just a city man stuck in a small town with annoying locals.

Sometimes he wondered if there was any truth to those jokes about rural areas. Maybe there was a smidgen, from some days long past, that would explain the unexplainable stupidity of Brideswell residents.

A young woman came out of the doctor's office area, looking a bit shell-shocked but ultimately okay. She had light chestnut hair that had been re-groomed and pulled into a severe bun, exposing several cuts and grazes on her face and neck. Her complexion was still paler then ivory, but she had an altogether healthier look than when he'd helped her to the ambulance.

He watched her benignly, ready to smile and wave is she recognised him or seemed thus inclined. She cast her glance about wearily, not expecting to see anyone she knew. Her gaze settled on James, and her lit up with recognition and gratitude.

She took a seat on the plastic bench beside him. "Thank you, for helping me earlier. I... I really needed some and you were the only person... I'm Claire, by the by."

" I'm James Leovan. You're welcome," he assured her, "people in this town aren't... very helpful, in crises. Don't get me wrong, they're nice enough people. In good times."

Claire, for it was she, skimmed over this last bit of knowledge. She rested her head against the cold, white wall of the waiting room. Her clothes were ripped and dirty, she'd have to throw them out later. However, at the moment, she was content to look like a refugee and worry about her friends.

"Have you heard anything about Jill?"

"Jill?"

"The other person I had with me. She was in a bad way."

"No," James said, shrugging. "I drove here, haven't seen her since the ambulance left. Maybe the nurse at the desk could tell you."

Claire glanced at the harassed looking nurse. "I don't think she'd answer my question at the moment... I have to get out of here! My friends are down there! My brother-"

"I don't think you're in any position to go anywhere quite yet," he cut in. "Look at you, you're dead on your feet. You need rest and recouperation." He gave a knowing nod at her indignation. "I know how you feel; my daughter and her friends are lost out there... somewhere. Hopefully with my cousin Albert, but he's never been much of a child-minder."

As James watched, a realisation seemed to dawn on the young woman. All fatigue he had seen before appeared to drain away from her. "Cousin Albert? You mean... Wesker is your cousin? And if that's so, Sena must be your daughter?"

He looked startled. "Yes, that's right. Do you know them?"

Claire leaned towards him, away from her 'support wall'. "I know where they are. They need my help, Sena and my friends. At the moment she's fine, but if we don't get to her fast that might cease to be the case."

"What about Albert? Is he okay?"

"Believe me, Wesker can take care of himself. I have to get out of here and help them."

He thought about the dangers of letting Claire just walk out of the hospital, no matter her condition, and about the other girl, Jill, dying, or worse, waking up to find no one their waiting for news, James let her get as far as the exit door before following. There was no way he was going to let his eldest daughter get herself into too much trouble.

***

Victoria sensed indecision in the man behind her. She was familiar with the signs of this... feeling. It happened when she was about to bite someone, and they couldn't decide whether they just be bitten, run or fight. It was great fun to watch the prey steam and sweat over the choices and possible outcomes.

All in all, she decided, things were going exactly to plan. Well, not _/exactly/ to plan. Even better than that._

***~~~****

Um,.., yeah. Borrowed a phrase from Terry Pratchett here cos I thought it made it funnier. Ten cookies to whoever guesses what it is!!!! Any takers?? Any??

Oh, well. I'll just eat them myself. MwahahahaHA!

*scoffs cake*

Mmm... I love Wesker's baking. Can anyone else bake out there? I might need a new chef if this one gets killed by Victoria. It could happen people...(but it probably won't...)

REVIEW PLEASE!


	22. Feral

WARNING: this is a minichapter. Some of you might not like what you read in this chapter, but deal with it. Originally inspired by Shady Ashford's angst over Rebecca's condition in Crimson Africa, this particular plotline was intended for a later chapter but RamenKitty's work spurred it into action, so a big hand to Ramen and Shady777! *claps*

Thank you to all my reviewers! I love you all!

Zarbok~ that's quite alright! Uh... the pompoms. Yes, well. I think maybe I'd had too much caffeine... *scratches head embarrassedly* uh... just ignore it. ^^ thanks for the review!

Oogieboogieman~ *blushes* Thank you1 Though I have a feeling if you read that story you might change your mind, but I won't mind taking back-seat to _/that/_ story! THANKS!!!!

Shady Ashford~ Glad you liked! *glances at the M. of R. N. head on a spike as a desk ornament.* It took me awhile to kill it. It bounced back several times. Even now I'm not entirely convinced that it's dead, but who knows! As for Jill... you'll be finding out that all is not as it seems in about three paragraphs. Have I said too much? You tell me!

            Tell Alexis thank you. Her cooking skills seem, uh, exotic. Thanks for the patent!

Ms Billy Coen~ Phffft!

Mozco- I'm glad you read! Thank you for your review! YAY! I feel psyched! I understand completely about college and stuff, so that makes your review extra special!

Claire Y- thank you! Several people have found that fact amusing. Can't think why! ^_*

****~~~~~******

Polycythaemia= the condition of having too many red blood cells, originally treated by regaluar bloodletting of the patient, now can be treated with chemicals. The opposite of _/anaemia/ which literally means 'without blood'._

5 muffins to whoever gives me the direct translation of 'polycythaemia', or one close enough to fit the bill!

Chapter 22: Feral

Jill felt queer. She felt incredibly cold but exceedingly warm at the same time, like an intense fire was spreading through her blood and melting away the ice. Her head felt... dizzy. In short, she felt faint, and many other things besides.

The surgeons, doctors and nurses around her were perplexed. "There's nothing wrong here!" the plump one fumed.

"Look at her!" wiry number two argued, "she's obviously got _/something/ wrong with her, blood-loss, infection, anything!"_

Number One was still fuming. "That's thing, no sign of infection, and the red blood cell count is normal."

"Polycythaemia?"

"I doubt that, there are no chemicals to say that she was being treated for an abundance of red _/or/_ white blood cells. Nothing, I've checked. She's perfectly healthy, except for having a torn throat."

"Doctors! She's coming 'round!"

The doctors hurried over to the green clad nurse, gathering  round Jill's bed. She opened her eyes hesitantly, blinking at the intensity of the light. She saw blurred impressions of people before squeezing her eyes shut.

The raging fire in her blood now reached its peak. A restless defensiveness took hold of her. Her eyes flew open again, focussing on the people. The doctors and nurse instinctively shrank back.

Jill stood with more confidence than she'd ever thought it was possible to have, like cockiness but completely justified. She still wore her ragged cloths from the night before, soiled and bloodied. Jill was a picture to inspire only fear, the terror that would send all men home to mummy. And she couldn't have cared less.

With graceful strength she caught doctor no. 1's wrist and pulled him to her. She twisted his head to the side, revealing the fleshy neck. She was repulsed by the sight, the fat that insulated the delicate system of arteries and nerves. Quelling this distaste she bared fangs, and bit deep...

The blood was warm and bittersweet, tasting of life, tears, happiness, pain, all the human emotions in one sweet mouthful. Gone was the metallic tainted water that was tasted when she had pricked her finger or cut her hand. This was... ambrosia, the life-giving food of the gods.

The nurse began to scream, reminding Jill that others were in the room. She could hear the skeletal man creep behind a bed, whimpering. And then... a new sound! Rushing footsteps! Too many people...

The creature who was now Jill reached a lightening quick decision; stay, die- go, live. Animals have a unique sense of self-preservation. She walked over to the double-glazed window. There was a drop of three stories outside.

She grabbed a scalpel and hacked away at the rubber divide between the glass panes. All she needed was some leverage... Damn! Not working! Time to think of another plan, and fast.

Jill lunged at the screaming nurse out of sheer irritation. The long fingernails that Jill had so proudly grown since Raccoon City were now as hard as steel. They caught the nurse on the cheekbone and took with them a strip of skin. Blood cascaded over the nurse's face, who sank howling to the floor and cried.

Jill snarled and stalked through the door, hoping to still have some headway. There might not be much time; the guards sounded near. Turning to glance over her shoulder as she ran, Jill was surprised to see the guards/policemen all the way down at the other end of the corridor.

A shout of 'halt' and other threatening noises spurred Jill on. She ran, ignoring the elevator, down the flight of stairs, taking three at a time. She tripped on the last flight and rolled... got up and then continued running, completely unhurt; not even a bruise. She pushed past hospital staff, patients, searchers and anyone else who got in her way.

Finally bursting through the exit doors, she ran into the still night. She heard the faint sounds of searchers, the wind in the trees, everything. A still night had never seemed so _/loud/_ before. And then there was the blood...

Blood over her shirt, her mouth and even under her fingernails. How did it get there? It wasn't _/her/ _blood in any case. Jill found she was completely unhurt. Maybe it was Chris's, or Claire's... Speaking of her comrades, where were they? Why was she in the hospital, alone?

"What the hell is going on here?!" She screamed at the darkness.

Where to go? The sewers! That's where she had been before, and where she would find her friends. There was no time to worry now about the blood, it wasn't important. What was important was that her friends could be in need of her help, and here she was, barking to the darkness... the eerily _/light/ darkness..._

The confused new vampiress, formerly Jill Valentine, set of into the woods, eyes glinting 

mysteriously.

~~~*~~~


	23. Planning

Wow, 80 reviews! Squee! I love you all!

Right, right, I know. I should've updated earlier, but this chapter was bugging me. I can't get the flow for it I want! Oh, well. In the interest of keeping the ball rolling, here's my not-quite-happy version. I've thought and thought and haven't been able to come up with a better way of writing this particular section. All criticism accepted, within reason.

5 muffins to all my reviewers!

Ramen~ because of your own story where STARS has some ... unomnipotent issues. *beams*Thank you! I'll try to never let your eyes burn, that would be .. wrong.! Here's that plot twist you asked me for (not really a plot twist but Bon-zay) in chapter 7. Hope you like!

Zarbok~aw, I feel all warm and fuzzy inside! Well, I wasn't going to make Jill a vampire for a while but... I thought I might 'run-outta-time' or something. You may have all the muffins and biscuits you want! *gives tray* Thank you!

Theburnin'samurai~ I had some vampires killed off in earlier chapters, so no, they are not invincible. Not your average ones anyway. And they aren't as strong as tyrants but they are much faster! Thanks for reviewing! (I can never type your name without laughing. Why is that? Another mystery of the world.)^^

Shady Ashford~ heheh, I think Jill is mildly confused herself. Don't worry, I won't send her to my house unless you eat all Alexis's cheesecake. In which case, Grrr. Muffins all round! I sent you the same email twice on Friday, hope you got it! Thanks for reviewing and try to update soon!

Chapter 23:- planning

When Jill got to the storm grating it was surrounded by patrol cars and searchers. There were both heated arguments and discussions about two people who had been through the grate recently.

She wondered if it was someone from her crew.

            So it seemed that going through the storm drain was off limits. This was easily solved by going down a man-hole almost two kilometres away. She lifted the lid off, finding it easy than she had imagined, and slid into the hole. A light trickle of summer drizzle ran down her neck. The ladder was rusted and slippery but Jill still went down. When she was at the bottom she realised she hadn't closed the lid, but decided to ignore that fact.

            The foulness of the sewers seemed to have lessened since the last time she was there, but that was a side-effect of the virus she now bore, that living among filth would not affect her nose. It was about the same strength as a human's nose, just tuned for other things.

            Through her eyes, the sewer was lit up by an errant disco-ball; the algae walls were bathed magenta, the ground a dull purple. Never before had the sewers seemed so inviting. She could hear the smallest sound, from the shuffling of rats to the faint hum of cars, to the sound of feet ahead. She followed, unconsciously using the skill of a trained hunter

            She stalked two people, one fit and young, who was shining a torch on the walls, and the other older and out of shape, wheezing along behind. When the unfit one leant against the wall, Jill drew her gums back and leapt!

            She had miss-judged the distance, and came splashing down with a 'spfft' to land in the sewerage. Gagging and retching, she pushed a hand through the viscous substances and, after clawing wildly at the air, found the edge of the path.

            She pulled herself out, spitting as she tried to rid herself of the trails of.. stuff.. that had edged its way through her lips. Shaking her hair, she looked up.

            A circle of reddish light surrounded her. Jill blinked several times as she waited for her vision to clear and make sense of the brightness. The silhouette of a young woman appeared, approaching hesitantly. Dimly, Jill recognised her.

            "Jill? What are you doing here?" the silhouette chuckled slightly. "That was quite some tumble you took there! Are you feeling alright now?"

            Jill blinked a couple more times before realisation hit her. "Claire! What's going on?"

            "What do you mean? How dd you get here out of the hospital so fast and so quickly healed?"

            "Hospital? Where is everyone? WHAT IS GOING ON?" Jill's eyes flashed dangerously to prompt a quick response.

            Claire and her middle-aged companion backed away fast, with the former readying her gun.

****  

A tramp, dead for fifteen years, watched sombrely as 'the alpha' approached. To each other, vampires had no names. After a decade or so, being in a grimy sewer eating rats and talking to the same people every day, you started to go slightly insane. Things like conversation and friendship didn't mean so much any more. But survival and food; ah, now _/that/_ would always be important.

            The one thing you needed to know to survive in the vampiric world was how to recognise people stronger than you. Of the vampires who existed, 'the alpha' was the most powerful. She was not necessarily the skill fullest hunter, or the most intelligent tracker, but she maintained an air of 'give me a reason and I'll beat you'. As yet, no one had given her a reason.

            So, when our deceased tramp saw the Alpha coming with an entourage of skilled vampires, he decided to vamoose. And fast.

``

Wesker was very proud of his plan. He would 'pretend' to be on Victoria's side, rid himself of STARS and then blow the sewers sky high anyway. Perfect. No one would ever suspect the ol' double-crossing _/again/_. 

            Well, so it was clichéd. But then, it was going to work. Granted, it could use some fine-tuning in places but ultimately all would be okay. He had a sample of diluted 'V' and he would go home with another toy to play with. He _/really/_ wanted some of Victoria's virus but... let's not get greedy.

            The tunnels he was being led through all had the same military theme. The fittings, if there were any, were all steel and chrome, and the only paint was stencilled with things like 'E12' written on the walls.

            He really wished he'd had more time to read that piece if paper.

            Victoria approached a vampire, a full-grown one, completely naked. He tried to make a quick escape, but she caught up with him easily. After some discussion, she let the frightened corpse go and returned to Wesker, smiling satisfactedly.

            "We're on the right trail," she purred. "Our good friend has just told me that he was on the trail of prey. This means, he was following our quarry."

            Wesker merely nodded. Big whoop. 

            "I'm going to consult with my, uh, minions to find what way we should go. You see, there are now two group in the tunnels, maybe three, and I want to make sure I'm going after the right group.'

            Once again he nodded, looking bored. He had noticed, however, that Victoria seemed a bit flustered. He took it as a sign as while she might be more powerful than these 'minions' she was not as... trained... in tracking and hunting. Must be a drawback of being so powerful that everyone else does everything for you, he mused.

            She left, drawing a circle of mean-looking vampires around her. Most were shorter than four feet, with cropped hair or braids. Not the sort of people Wesker himself would've gone to for hunting advice.

            _/So, two groups ay? Well, one will be Chris and I presume the other will be the children. After all, STARS won't want them disrupting battleplans and asking awkward questions. Like what happened to Celia. No, I think I have sowed some seeds of distrust with leaving /_that/_matter unresolved. So... no moral scruples on this one (thank god), only a duty to do.../_

            Wesker stared blankly at the wall opposite him for a few seconds before becoming aware once again of his surroundings. The vampires were completely ignoring him. They seemed to have accepted him as being a vampire, or just didn't want of confrontation. Wesker didn't know and he didn't particularly care, but this did give him an opportunity to finish reading that letter.

            _For the comfort of Harold Thompson, Mayor of Brideswell, and his family, this facility...itation facility to be used in the event re...uberculosis to the community,_

_            It has been expre...bers of the council ... tuberculosis ( ..after referred to as TB) is a growing threat in ...unities. The Health Care Foundation, HCF, has made it their personal business to provide help ...infected by TB._

_            The lower levels are to ... personal residences of Mayor Thompson and his family. The upper levels (A-C) will be use...eat victims of TB. Mayor Thompson has specifically asked that this be the case, so that h...y may overlook the proceedings in a personal involvement._

_Updates are as follows;_

_-TB research w...poned until adequate information on Ebola is ..._

_-Mayor Thompson has requested to test developments on ..., who are unaware of the ... he holds but are dangerously close ... out._

_Anyway queries ...problems with the attached duty sheet, contact:_

_G. Ibenser_

_HCF facility_

Wesker read the last line several times before folding the yellowed paper and putting it back into his pocket in such a way that it would protect his sample of the V virus. He stroked his chin, and decided to go with his intuition.

_/HCF is involved with the vampires eh? So, does that mean that _/they/_ invented the V virus, not __Victoria__? And if so, __Victoria__ is lying about her identity, age and, most importantly, her strength.../_

He smiled a predatory grin that is all so Wesker-ish. Seemed like the tides had changed.

~~~~

PLEASE READ AND REVIEW (this means you too, Arch)^^


	24. Discord

Thank you all for the reviews! You may all have more cookies! *tray is brought forward by Wesker wearing a pink flowery apron*

Shakahnna~ thanks for the review! No, STARS couldn't be perfect, nosiree. What would be the fun in that? I think cowering with garlic and a chainsaw would be a good idea too! ^^

Shady Ashford~ I'm glad you like the idea, and that my other chapter wasn't too shoddy. Sometimes things just don't seem to go to plan, ay? I sent you an email a while back, but I think my account might be playing up again. *evil glare at the computer*

Zarbok~ hey, thanks! If I need some help on vamp characteristics I'll give you a call! ^_^

Theburninsamari~ I'm going to up the 2people-1body thing in this chapter. Hope it goes well!

Chapter 24:

Claire watched her former friend suspiciously. She didn't want to think that Jill was a vampire. She thought she'd have been safe when she was gotten to the hospital but Claire should've known that viruses didn't stop as soon as a GP saw a patient.

            James wheezed softly, glancing from one woman to the other, completely bewildered. Claire was openly hostile while Jill looked shocked and flustered. "Claire... what? Why? Put that gun down," she pleaded with none of her earlier anger.

            Claire narrowed her eyes. "What are you?"

            "Are you blind? It's _me_!" Jill looked at her desperately, shading her eyes from the light.

            "Isn't that your friend from the hospital?" James whispered into Claire's ear.

            She shook her head. She didn't trust this 'Jill' anymore than she'd trust a rotting zombie who cried 'brains'. "She's changed," she hissed out of the corner of her mouth, "trust me on this one."

            He looked at those inhuman eyes and agreed.

            "Claire! Please... what's going on?"

            She shook her head again with conviction. "You're not Jill," she muttered, briefly realising how it must've felt for Rebecca; finding all her comrades dead in the mansion. "Not Jill."

            "Where is everybody? Are they okay? Chris? The kids? What's going on?"

            Claire absently let her stance slacken, staring back with less certainty. "I don't know where anyone is," she admitted.

            Jill looked stricken, eyes wide and her face unnaturally pale. Either this was the real Jill or a vampire doing an Oscar winning performance. Claire slowly lowered her gun but her expression showed she wasn't convinced. She didn't put it past a vamp to do a trick like this.

            Jill rose to her feet gracefully, and Claire resumed her aggressive pose. "Sit back down!"

            She didn't seem to hear.

            "Sit back down or I'll shoot you, dammit!"

            She slowed her approach to a gentle lurch; one hand still shading her now closed eyes, the other barely brushing the furry walls tenderly, deep in concentration. "I can find them," she murmured faintly.

            "What do you mean?" Claire demanded.

            "I... I can hear them." She knocked a fist against the bricks in a rhythmical impression of footfalls. "Footsteps... there are two groups. One from that tunnel and the others down the tunnel over there." She traced out a map in the fungi. "They'll be the heavier footsteps, of course."

            "How do you know this?"

            Jill opened her eyes and stared into Claire's own mournfully. "I don't know how."

            There was a dubious snort, followed by a resigned sigh. "Then I guess you'd better lead us to the others." Claire let Jill pass her, received a confused look from James and then followed, her gun ready and indicating that she didn't trust Jill as much as a three-month dead fish.

*******

Ben weighed little for his height, and it was easy enough for Chris to slung him over a shoulder, giving Barry (who would normally volunteer for the lifting) a chance to rest his already injured shoulder. Ben's breathing was faint and irregular. Every so often he would take a deep intake of breath as his legs were jolted, or as Rebecca applied an astringent or pushed down on a tourniquet.

            Rivulets of crimson persistently trailed over his calf ad dropped onto the sewer floor; the floor that seemed so may miles below him. Time transformed into never-ending agony. Trails of blood snaked through the tunnels, mingling with the moss and dirt.

            Rebecca stepped back from the boy, having nothing else to do. Already the bandages were beginning to take a reddish tinge. It didn't seem like there would be much blood to stain them soon. Grimly Chris continued, trying to ignore the congealing liquid that covered his fingers and clothes.

            "Someone's coming!" Barry hissed. He and Rebecca upholstered their weapons. Chris looked for somewhere to put Ben down before realising that he shouldn't move him. He felt very vulnerable and foolish.

            Someone whimpered as a vampire hurtled down the tunnel.

~~~

Jill, still smarting over the bitterness of her reception, looked up at the disturbance. "Is that gunfire?"

~~~

Chunks of flesh and part of a rotting smile were blown of the creature but still it didn't seem phased. The vampire, the _child_ grinned distortedly at the sight of so much food in one area.

~~~

A familiar sound reached the ears of our very bored Albert Wesker. "Gunfire!" Victoria hissed. "It must be STARS!"

Wesker rolled his eyes at her exquisite deduction skills.

~~~

Sena cringed, expecting the sounds of screaming and desperation to take over the impressive clashes of shooting. With her one open eye she saw the decaying face and smelled the foulness of its rotting body, the nauseating stench that rolled off her in waves.

            All seemed lost, death seemed certain when a blur speed along the tunnel and collided with the vampire. There were sounds of cracking bones and snapping jaws until with an almighty and decisive 'sprrraack!' the head was wrenched free, rolling past Barry's feet and eventually into the sewerage.

            Who stood was completely unexpected. "Jill?"

            She looked the same as ever with nary a scratch, except for the weirdly glowing eyes and splatters of blood on her clothes. Her smile was also much more disturbing.

            She seemed to leer at the group, showing those long fangs and approaching confidently. Barry prepared to shoot the thing that had stolen Jill's body when it stopped moving.

            "Barry?" it said, in tones of anxiety.

            Claire and Sena's father came dashing down the tunnel. Claire ran desperately, vaulting over the headless corpse without even glancing at it. James surveyed it with mixed horror and distaste before noticing his daughter. He smiled warmly at her and gave her a gentle hug.

            The joyful reunion was broken short by the growing tension.

            Claire shrugged at their puzzled glances and questioning faces. "She attacked us earlier."

            "What?" Barry growled, 'She _attacked _you?" he turned to Chris, "we can't trust her."

            "Please don't talk about me as if I'm not here1' the thing screeched. Sena looked at Jill with pity. Her purple eyes reminded her strongly of Uncle Al's glowing glasses, though she couldn't think why.

            "She's not herself," Claire explained.

            Jill looked at her comrades with fear and disbelief. They gazed back with distrust and open hostility. "What's going on?" she whispered, not really expecting an answer from these 'strangers'.

            James tightened his hold on Sena, severely limiting her oxygen supply. "She doesn't seem to know she's uh..."

            "A vampire?" Barry supplied, eying the creature that had, in theory, killed one of his best friends.

            "What?" Jill cried. Her head jerked up and searched his face for the twist of a smile that would tell her it was some cruel joke. All she saw was hate and despair.  Her eyes glowed in her confusion and she found herself aware of the metallic tang of blood in the air.

            She traced it to its source, the bundle on Chris's shoulder that was Ben.  "Is he okay?" she asked hesitantly, not failing to notice the guns that had been turned on her when her eyes had glowed and she'd sniffed the air. 

                        "He needs to go to hospital now," Rebecca replied bluntly, radiating anger. "He's lost a lot of blood; which I guess is what you can _smell_." He face blanched as she realised what she'd said but she showed no signs of apologising.

                        The jibe meant for Jill's species, not her personally, struck deep. Mixed with the fear, aggression and unease that she felt from her team-mates and the children she seemed to shut down.

            Her face became hard and emotionless, her stance became tense and alert. The virus that was almost like a separate entity began goading her, strengthened by her emotions and the scent of blood.

            _See? _Her virus consoled her smugly; _they can't accept anyone with a virus. Without even talking to you they assume you're dangerous. You have your own reactions and personality but no, you've got a virus, now you're amongst the ranks of the enemy. They'll kill you._

            Looking at the STARS expressions, Jill didn't doubt this. What do I do? She asked silently.

            _Be helpful; get the boy to 'hospital'. Then ditch him on the way, or eat him. Yes, we could do with some food... then you'll get away from them and can contact the others._

            The others?

            _Yes, the others like you. They'll help us kill them all, have a banquet even! _

            Jill nodded.

             "I can find a way out," she said coldly. "I do have an interesting sense of smell when it comes to finding fresh air and my eyes can pick up any change in light."

            Automatically the STARS began shaking their heads and making sounds of dissent. "I'm sorry Jill," Chris said tiredly, "but there's no way for us to know if we can trust you as a vampire."

            She approached Rebecca, who shied away slightly. "How long does he have?"

            Rebecca looked at her with distrust, and then at Chris and Ben. "Not very long."

            "This is the only chance he'll get," Jill said, lifting Ben gently off Chris's shoulder and taking him into a fireman's life. "I'll be going fast and you won't be able to keep up, so I wouldn't bother."

            "I managed to keep with Unc- Wesker," Sena said timidly, "and he supposedly has a virus."

            "There's no supposedly about it," grumbled Barry, glaring at Jill as if his treachery was her fault.

            Jill was too busy staring at Sena and inwardly cursing her to notice.  "It'll be too dark; I have no torch," she told her, trying to persuade her not to come.

            Sena merely shrugged. "Then it'll be like before. I can open grates and stuff for you, stuff you won't be able to do when you're carrying Ben."

            Jill was about to refuse when she noticed the STARS preparing to do the same thing. They didn't trust her with the two children.  And there was some annoying logic in Sena's thinking, that is, assuming she actually _wanted_ to take him anywhere.

            "Sure," she said before anyone else could object. She grabbed Sena and pulled her down the tunnel, deaf to the protesting cries behind her.

            James looked appealingly at Chris and Barry. "You just can leave them like this!" 

            Barry returned his gaze. "We don't have any choice. Jill was our friend; she might be able to keep her memories and values as a vampire and take Ben and Sena to the hospital. If she doesn't... well, then she'll probably..."

            He trailed off, staring at the man who had shrunk in size after the 'disappearance' of his daughter,

            "I guess we have to go after them either way," he told Chris.

            Chris nodded glumly, annoyed at Barry's prejudice and Rebecca's rudeness towards Jill. "I guess so."

            They left down the tunnel, going as fast as they could.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*********************~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Okay, so there it is! I hope the reactions are believable enough and all. Squee! Am watching the Oscars1 Go Lord of the Rings and Keisha Castle-Hughes!

REVIEW PLEASE! ^_^ it'll make me happy!


	25. Grim reaper

Here's chapter twenty five. Wow, that's a lot of letters when you actually spell it out like that. A whole lot. Anyway, here's a bit more action- or at least, happenings- that helps me to answer those questions about where Jill's loyalties lie. I should think it will be clear by the end of the chapter. ^^

_Mark Foley~ I'm glad you think my story has a lot of potential and thank you for your review! As you will see if you continue reading, it is not the T-Virus at all but a different virus. Of course if you are reading this reponse you already know that. Hmm, flaw in plan! Thanks for reviewing!!!!_

_Shady777~Um, I don't want to answer your question about stakes and sunlight in case I change my mind but at the moment I'm thinking a 'vampire' as an affectionate name instead of an actual race. Still, might change, especially as some of my friends are waay to obsessed with stuff like vampires and Buffy. Glad you liked my portrayal of the STARS' reaction. I thought it might be too cheesy! But yes, Jill does have a darker side... *atmospheric music plays* _

_Zarbok__~ You may have all the cookies you want! Yes Jill was a bit dramatic, ay? I'm seriously considering her demise but am thinking that evil Jill will add an interesting element... oh well, guess I'll have to make a decision sooner or later! _

_Mondo202~ yes, I think losing the frilly dress is a good idea too!^^_

THANKIE FOR REVIEWS! COOKIES FOR ALL!

Chapter 25:- grim reaper

Victoria smiled wolfishly at Wesker. "Now is the time to earn your keep," she told him, "Down that tunnel is an old hospital ward for when there were threats of influenza epidemics and the like. Naturally it is not public knowledge and vampire usage is low. If you pass through it then you can find your way to where the shooting was. Kill anyone who's been left alive."

            Wesker raised an eyebrow. "And you and your crones can't do this yourself because..?"

            Victoria looked at him witheringly. "You can't expect me to hunt them down myself! I just got clean, and my role here is as advisor, not battering ram. My own vampires have failed in all their attempts to eliminate this threat. So I place the requirement of their deaths on you. I'm sure you won't fail me..?" she smiled sweetly, managing to show all her teeth. Some were slightly discoloured by years of blood-drinking.

            Wesker shrugged. "I think I can manage it."

            "Good. Is there anything you need? Back-up assistance, maybe?"

            Wesker shook his head. There was no point; he'd have to kill the back-up assistance anyway.

            "Well then. Come back victorious or not at all!" she commanded.

            Wesker nodded grimly. When dealing with the STARS that seemed to be the rule. It was time for a Wesker victory now.

~*~

Sena hurried to keep up with the unencumbered gait of the vampiress. Jill showed no signs of relenting her fast pace and impatiently dragged the stumbling girl after her. They were almost out of hearing-range for the STARS.

            A couple more twists and turns down the dark, stinking tunnels and Jill finally stopped. Sena clutched at her chest, breathing heavily.  Uncle Al had obviously been holding back for her. When she had recovered her breath enough it occurred to her to ask why they had stopped.

            Jill looked at her with narrowed eyes and placed Ben's limp form on the tunnel floor. He coughed fitfully and then was still again. 

            "Uh, Jill? What's happening? He's not-" a worst-case scenario entered Sena's head. She listened for the sounds of Ben's breathing. She fancied she heard a whispy sigh and was satisfied.

            All that Sena could see of Jill disappeared as the latter closed her eyes in frustration. She was stuck in limbo. Should she really, _really_ kill these children? Or should she show the STARS that she could be trusted?

            _The question isn't 'should you' but 'could you'. You've been friends with these people through hell several times. You caught the T-Virus in the city and got the anti-virus. Doesn't that mean you'd be immune to the viruses?_

            She shook her head. "these viruses aren't the same," she told her subconscious.

            _Your team members should give you the benefit of the doubt. Haven't you proven yourself again and again to them?_

            Sena coughed nervously. "Huh-hello? Are you still there?"

            "Yes," Jill said, snapping her eyes open. "I think something's wrong with Ben though.'

            "What is it?" Sena demanded, stumbling towards them, Damn the darkness!

             Jill placed a forearm tenderly over the unconscious boy's throat. He stirred and moaned slightly, shaking his head gently from side to side. "His breathing is irregular!" she exclaimed, and pushed down on his neck.

            Ben coughed desperately. His eyes opened and he stared into Jill's lavender orbs. They regarded him with a faint hint of amusement and an even fainter hint of regret. He could hear the sound of someone else's voice over the hiss of blood in his ears.

            Sena heard the low cough and scrambled closer. Her groping hand closed on his fingers. They squeezed hers futiley.

            "He's alive, but he needs some help!" 

            "I think he's choking!" Jill said, seeming worried but watching the seen quite calmly. She could see what Sena could not; the bare forearm that pinned Ben to the floor and kept all air from his lungs. Ben's rolling eyes and one hand trying to pry the arm off with attempts that became weaker and weaker. Sena, holding on to his fingers and crying, thinking that some cruel twist of fate was taking his life away, perhaps holding onto some hope that Jill would be able to save him.

            The body was still. Jill could hear the sluggish pulse get increasingly slower. All ready there were no signs of life. His windpipe was crushed.

            "He's... dead," she said, slightly shocked herself, but more pleasantly. She hoped that the faint beating of his pulse wouldn't be felt by Sena. He would die soon enough but Jill didn't want to waste time waiting and let the STARS gain on her.

            Sena sat in shock, refusing to admit that some one she'd been imaging laughing with about the whole affair was dead. A boy who didn't deserve either his real death or the fake one that had been assigned to him.

            "What do we do now?" She said quietly, recognising that she needed to get herself out of the sewers before she could grieve properly.

            Jill closed her eyes again, fighting back a small serge of conscience. " I.."

            "Should we go back to the STARS?"

            "They'll be too far behind us. We should continue looking for an exit. I'll be able to find one it we go near it."

            Sena closed her own eyes and nodded slowly, a rocking movement of the head that carried much emotion.  "'kay. What about…."

            Jill looked at Ben. She could hear no pulse now, faint of otherwise. She could feel the change in temperature when she put a hand on his chest to check for a pulse. Already the blood was cooling. "We should leave him here," she said sadly, though she felt only a little remorse.

            Sena nodded again, acknowledging this little defeat. It wasn't like they had a choice. Jill grabbed her shoulder and pushed her a little roughly down the tunnel.

~*~

Victoria was right. The ward was old and dusty. Ripped mattresses lay under over-turned hospital beds. Green dividing curtains hung rotting in strips on rusty rails. Dust lay thick on the furniture.

            Wesker looked at the wreckage and polished a smudge of dirt from his glasses. He looked at them critically, catching a glimpse of his red-eyed reflection in the dark glass. He looked like he'd been run over by a truck.

            He sighed and put the aviators back on. Worrying about appearances at a time like this was impractable. He needed to focus on hitting the vampires where it would hurt, The only place he could think of was back where he'd first run into Victoria.

            He tried to picture the easiest way to get back to that room. The more he thought about it the more central it seemed. If he could start the explosion there and fuel the fire so it would smoke the vampires out... but he first had to find someway to get back to the room without going past the vampires he'd just left. Lord knew what they'd do to him if it looked like he was going to double-cross them... yes, he thought it was to the right...

            Wesker slid silently past the wreckage of the ward and sidled through a sturdy door. The distant sounds of vampires carried through the tunnels before all was silent. Not even the sounds of rats could be heard in this part of the sewers. It was like a lost world.

            He made his way gently through the tunnels, silent as a ghost, trying to find a hint of pine cleaner that would lead him back to the main quarters. All that reached his nose was the smell of rotting material and flesh, and the musty smell of stale air. A single step sent a cloud of dust spiralling through the air.

            Through these dust clouds Wesker proceeded down the tunnel. It seemed to be a main corridor that linked all the rooms, judging by the amount of doors that led off from them. He halted at one, staring at the wide array of rotting linen. 

            _Taffp__._

            Wesker froze, listening. The length of the hallway was unnaturally still. He began walking again, ears tuned. He was certain he'd just heard a muffled footstep. After a few metres he stopped abruptly again. _Taffp__._

            He continued, smiling grimly. So he was being followed; seems Victoria actually _did _have above-average intelligence. He turned into a side tunnel as quietly as he could and dashed into a room on the left. Through the open crack he caught a glimpse of gold and red.

            Victoria herself was following him.

            He crept away from the door and hurried away. A slight creak told him he was once again being followed. He was uncomfortably aware that he was leaving dusty footprints every time he took a step, but there was nothing for it.

            Victoria sounded closer.

~*~

Barry huffed and ran down the tunnels. His shoulder ached and patches of sweat dampened his shirt, stinging any open cuts and abrasions that he had collected in the course of the night.  His head was pounding and thoughts were scattered because of it. He couldn't really even comprehend that he was cahsing down Jill before she could kill two children.

            What a night.

            Through the erratic patches of torchlight he caught a glimpse of an arm. He quickly pointed his beam of torchlight at it and tried not to jolt the torch around too much. The arm was attached the beaten body of Ben.

            Barry pushed past and held a hand against Chris's chest.

            "I think I've found the bodies. Don't let the kids see," he murmered, and went to investigate further.

            Chris nodded briefly and turned to his troop. He motioned for them to move towards the wall.

            "What's going on?" Rebecca asked.

            James looked nervously at them before glancing up and down the tunnels. "shouldn't we continue mobbing? Every second increases the danger, you know, or so I've been told."  
            Chris stared at him pityingly.

            Barry used as little light as he could, mainly relying on the glow from the group behind him, so as not to cause any more confusion. His questing fingers found Ben's arm. It was lukewarm. There was no pulse.

            Barry cursed.

            Chris told Rebecca to keep everyone there and went to see what was happening. "What did you find?" he hissed.

            "Ben's here; he's dead. I don't know if Sena's here or not. Should I turn the torch on?"

            "Yeah," Chris said defeatedly. "I guess we'd better find out."

            They turned on their torches and shone them around the dingy tunnel. Ben's body lay flat on the floor, eyes half close and mouth wide open. From the teenagers and James there were series of exclamations and some sobbing. Rebecca rushed to the corpse and checked it, like it would make a difference.

            Sena was no where to be seen.

            "His windpipe was crushed," Rebecca told Chris and Barry quietly. "I would say it was done by something like a pipe but..."

            "So it wasn't a death of natural causes?" Barry asked.

            "No, unfortunately not."

            Chris looked down the tunnel into the inky blackness and tried to mute his thoughts. Too many things were happening at once. How could he believe that Jill, _his _Jill, had just murdered this young boy that they had been trying to save?

~~~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ah, the end of a chapter.  I didn't enjoy doing it. I really didn't. But Jill-the-evil-vampire is just that, an evil vampire. What would you do if you were an evil vampire? Bye Ben. Miss you heaps. XOX

Jill: I feel I'm getting a bad rep here. Before this I was the dependable woman. It's like making Chris the bad guy.

Wesker: welcome to the dark side.

Jill: I don't think I'm that dark yet, thank you very much! So I killed a kid, How many people have you killed?

Wesker: 57. None kids. And most of them deserved it. They were evil scientists using people and viral companies for their own unfathomable purposes. I'm nothing like them. I wear shades.

Jill:...

Now it's... *atmospheric music* REVIEW TIME! (please?)


	26. Heat

Sorry about the colossal wait! It's hard for me to continue writing when it's the holidays! I've been suffering from the dreadful procrastination and writers block disease. Anyways, here's chapter 26, finally

Zarbok- heh, it is about time ay? Still, over the next chapter or two I'll be finally able to play that out a bit more. 

Shady- well I wouldn't exactly call this soon but at least it's here now! And sorry for being so slack about writing emails to you, I haven't been on the net very often and so I haven't been writing many emails lately!  Sorry!! XP

Chapter 26

The young vampire, now bored, appeared to become completely inanimate. He was about eight, when he was alive, and gentle decomposition over the years had done nothing to lose that look of scrawniness. He had, however, obtained a look of craftiness.

            A JK Rowling fan that had happened upon him would be forgiven for likening him to a goblin. They shared a swarthy and cunning, and also repulsive, appearance. A scab met at the corner of his mouth. He picked at it with a jagged fingernail disinterestedly.

            A Wesker-coloured blur darted through a half opened door down the corridor and disappeared almost instantly. 'Goblin' cocked his head. He could hear the sounds of a pursuit; obviously this was a getaway attempt. He began following the intruder, fancying he was drawing nearer to his prey. If this kept up, he'd be the one to get the glory for apprehension.

            A hand clasped on his shoulder and drove him into the wall. The sound of cracking cartilage filled his ears and his vision swam wildly as his nose was systematically broken. The creature he was tracking was off like a shot.

            Goblin turned himself around, rubbing at his nose tenderly even as it healed. He found himself in the presence of a highly ticked-off Victoria. She spat at him.

            "What are you doing?!"

            He tried to think of something that would get him out of trouble. "I was tracking the intruder. I was almost upon him until you broke my nose."

            "Imbecile!" she hissed. "I was following the recruit to make sure he didn't double-cross me! You've ruined everything. Now," she began talking to herself out-loud, "he'll think we've double-crossed him and he won't help us. Do you see what you've done?" She launched into a tirade of insults too severe for her almost demure appearance.

            Goblin stared back stonily, almost being insubordinate. "Well if you had the tracking skills of a hog he might not have noticed you were after him."

            She broke his nose again and sent him to alert the others that there was the possibility of a very intense fight.

***

His fingers were numb. He pressed those on his right hand to his cheek and couldn't feel either. It was like he was made of plastic. The temperature of the sewers finally began to hit home, and it was definitely cold. He stared at his hands in fascination. They were covered in dirt but obviously still the hands of man who didn't do much extreme exercise.

            James rubbed them on the material of his shirt and then ignored them. He also ignored the stench of sewerage and sweat and the ticking of his pulse in his forehead. Years of working in a sedate life-style were working against him. His feet were raw and blistered inside his black loafers. It was a blessing they were numb. Step after step opened the blisters again and his socks were accumulating rust-coloured splotches. 

            If it wasn't his daughter who was in this position, he may have given up and just lain on the floor, waiting to be found or to pass out from exhaustion. Be that as it may, he wasn't the type to abandon his child so and continued going despite the factors working against him.

            All he could think of was the strange woman from the hospital.

            What could happen to make her so insane? Why did everyone refer to Albert with fear and hate? And why did it have to be his town and his family involved? Something out of the blue, something unpredictable and it had to happen to him?

***

Wesker dashed through open doors and over derelict furniture, only half-trying to be stealthy. Just because Victoria had appeared so far to be inept didn't mean that she couldn't rip him in two if she had a desire to.

            As he skidded around a corner a hint of pine reached him. He tracked it hurriedly to another set of heavily rusted security doors, though these ones were wide open. The scent of pine was obscenely strong and again made his eyes water.

            Piles of bulky and time-stained blankets lined the corridor. Huddled into the foetus position on top of these rotting sheets were vampires of different sizes and states of decomposition. They were all asleep. Some were even snoring gently.

            Wesker looked down the corridor with disgust. It reminded him strongly of maggots on a festering wound. After a brief hesitation he convinced himself that he had no choice but to creep past the sleeping fiends and hope they didn't wake.

            As he skirted the bodies, Wesker was very glad of the pine that masked what would have been an unbearably potent stench of decay. Huddled in sad, rust-coloured bunches were the broken forms of rodents, birds and some domestic animals that had the misfortune to stumble across the vampires. After tense moments and combating a desire to retch, Wesker tiptoed past the last vampire and shuddered, wondering all the while how he used to be at ease with such sights. He figured the intense pine was messing up his mind.

            He turned to see the room he had first come across Victoria in. It was completely empty. Well, this was the place. If his impressions were accurate, and they usually were, he was in the epicentre of the happenings in the vampire community. Now he needed to find a way to start a fire that would let of a really loud bang...

***

Jill listened to the sound of conversation. The sentry vampires were complaining about their mistress's short temper and about the "recruit". She couldn't make any sense of it and thus ignored them completely, leading the near-blind Sena around the area and continuing as normal.

            "Err, Jill?" She gave no indication of having heard. "I was thinking... maybe we should've stayed to wait with the others. What if they come across Ben's body and then don't come after us or think we're dead? So many things can go wrong."

            Jill massaged her temples and tried to block out Sena's voice. She may be naïve when it comes to double-dealing but she wasn't stupid either. Hell, she had the Wesker-gene for cunning, Jill was ready to bet, and merely needed some training to discover it completely.

            "Uh..." Jill said.

            Sena gave a silent, expectant reply.

            "Don't worry, everything will work out okay."

            "How do you know? That's just a cheesy line from children's action movies that doesn't work in real life."

            Jill briefly entertained the idea of leaving Sena in the sewers and outrunning her but thought she might miss the distraction of leading her astray. This was like a fun game of cat-and-mouse. How long would it take for little Sena to discover that she was completely lost in the presence of a creature that really only wanted to eat her?

            "Um... it'll all work out because Barry and Chris will make it work out."

            Chris... now there was another bundle of confusion. Although the initial bewilderment of her transformation had faded this still remained an intensely grey area. The look of betrayal and displeasure, and her reaction... pfft, it was probably only a left over emotion from being human. Human emotions had no place in the sewers.

            A twinkle of light caught her eye. Bored, and thinking that she might as well check it out, Jill hoisted Sena on her shoulders so they could check it out. Sena's arms strained against the heavy metal. Dirt and water dripped on to her face and she spluttered in distaste. That was gross.

            Inch by inch she managed to move the heavy man-hole cover. Jill barely managed to hide her surprise that such a little glimmer of light could such a little girl's salvation. Finally the cover was off, and all Sena do was scramble up to safety.

            Like Jill was going to let that happen.

            Sena was half-way out when Jill's strong fingers grasped her ankle and began to pull her in. Her own fingers scrabbled at the dampening concrete but could find no leverage. The very solid rim of the hole hit her chin and for a brief second she thought she might pass out.

            It was then that things began to heat up.

****

PLEASE REVIEW!!! PLEASE!


	27. Smoke

Hi guys... sorry I disappeared for awhile there. But now I'm back, so PRAISE ME!!!! Just kidding, read, review and tell me what you think, PLEASE!!! I apologise to those who follow this story that it's been so sporadic, but I thank you for having patience. Hopefully I will be more motivated to write this story now that I have some inspiration!  
  
Special thanks to Zarbok and Shady777 because quite frankly, you guys just rock. (And yes, Victoria sends her compliments to Veronica and congratulates her on her nice use of torture against the rebellious descendants)  
  
Chapter 27:  
  
He still couldn't believe how well it had all gone. He would never forget the look on her face when she came round the corner and saw him, ready to let hell loose. Of course, his timing could've been slightly better. He was singed and grumpy.  
  
No one ever really knew how such a spectacular blast was made. Even the maker probably doesn't know, not that he'd ever admit it. Perhaps over the years drug importers and factories had left chemicals of a delicate nature down there, or perhaps HCF and Victoria were up to something.  
  
The explosion Wesker had created rumbled through the sewers and tunnels, erupting at every pressure point it could find. Wooden foundations lit. Worn brick-ware that had supported the town of Brideswell began to crack under the extreme heat.  
  
It was like some sort of hellish earthquake. Parts of the city sunk. Shock waves rippled through the streets, shaking houses and upsetting fires. As a result, people woke finding that their fire or stove had flared and ignited a humble object, such as a couch.  
  
Wesker stood over the collapsed mineshaft and marveled at the effect. Somewhere below him Celia's body had been consumed by the flames. Around him the world was been ravaged by the explosion.  
  
His clothes were ripped, in some places intentionally so he had a rope of sorts to give him and extra boost out of the mineshaft. Blood smeared his face, but there were no cuts on him. He watched unemotionally as fire licked the bows of the tree, but turned to leave lest he was caught up in the chaos that was Brideswell.  
  
Wesker took several steps before the cold giggle reached his ears. Swiftly, he turned to see Victoria drop from a tree branch. She stood at the mouth of the mineshaft and smiled at him.  
  
"I should've known you'd somehow have avoided the inferno down there," he said, almost pleasantly.  
  
She inclined her head. "Didn't want to disappoint."  
  
His mouth was a thin line. "Care to tell me how you got out?"  
  
Victoria regarded him stoically. "I've lived in the sewers for a very long time. Did you really think that I wouldn't know any emergency exits? Why, as soon as I saw you with that lighter... I immediately dashed to one. This place, I knew it well."  
  
Wesker cursed inwardly, but managed to keep a poker face.  
  
"But I see you've kept your end of the bargain. I believe STARS to be dead..." she frowned slightly. "Which can also be said of my vampire horde. No matter, I will muster an army in time."  
  
Wesker raised an eyebrow, vaguely impressed that the near extinction of her sordid virus had little effect on her. Already she was plotting to gather more vampires and do something... vampire-y.  
  
"So now what?" he asked mockingly, readying himself for the oncoming fight.  
  
She frowned again. "Well... I do want your virus."  
  
As he had expected, Victoria lunged at him. Wesker ducked, pivoted, and slammed a fist into her stomach. She stumbled back, gasping. Then her eyes hardened. "So you have some speed and power," she muttered.  
  
She darted forward, feinting a punch to the head and then kicking left hard instead. Wesker fell heavily, eyes watering steadily. Both of his legs had been systematically broken in one easy sweep. He looked towards his legs and saw the yellow-white bone protruding through his calf, cutting through skin and trouser.  
  
Even as he watched, the bone began to repair and the flesh to knit together. He stood, slightly dizzy by the sudden pain and shock.  
  
Victoria gave a small scream of irritation, and threw herself at him. She became a whirling, snarling and kicking demon.  
  
---!----  
  
Jill sensed rather than smelt the far off presence of gasoline, fear and a sulphury match. With a premonition of what was about to happen she tensed, ready tp s[ong to freedom. Sena unknowingly took advantage of the vampire's distraction, wrenching her leg free and catching Jill round the head with severely dirtied sneakers.  
  
The young girl hauled herself to safety desperately.  
  
Jill was barely dazed by the attack to her head, and her survival reflexes gave her enough speed to jump for the concrete rim. She sailed through the hole and landed easily. Then the world rippled.  
  
Jill and Sena were propelled through the town's streets by a violent explosion that rattled the earth. Sena came into heavy contact with a set of stone steps that led to the bank. There she stayed. Jill hit a car, but got up a minute or two later and daedky headed to the forest, where she could wait out the confusion.  
  
----

Chris lay quietly. It hurt even to think. A hand grasped his own. "Uhn?" he asked groggily.  
  
"Hey mate, it's Barry. Had a bit of an explosion, but it's going to be alright. You just sit tight but be ready to move when we tell you to, ok?"  
  
Chris didn't have the energy to reply, but he thought distantly that for Barry to be so chipper something had to be really wrong. He felt a weight lift itself of his back.  
  
"Now Chris!"  
  
He rolled painfully over as fast as he could, and scrambled blindly. Thick black smoke assaulted his eyes. "Whoa, where are you off to?" Barry asked lightly.  
  
Chris stood painfully, adrenaline beginning to give him pain relief and energy. "What's happened?"  
  
"Some sort of explosion, I think. Parts of the tunnel have collapsed, and there's a fire. Rebecca and Claire are fine though, barely a scratch on them. I'm fine too, in case you're wondering, but wanting to get out before we get choked by the smoke."  
  
"Where's James and the kids?"  
  
Barry's voice dropped and became its usual solemn tone. "James is dead, a big slab of concrete... well, at least it was quick for him. Life sure ain't fair. But the kids are gone, we can't find them anywhere!"  
  
"You've done a search?"  
  
"Yes, while we were trying to find you too."  
  
Chris sighed. He reached through the dark till his fingers came into contact with Barry's shoulder. He punched it lightly. "Then let's get going. I don't like to admit it but there's nothing we can do."  
  
Barry nodded. "Girls! Let's go!"  
  
PLEASE REVIEW!


	28. Ladder

Sorry again for the delay! I was trying to decide if this is where I wanted to end the chapter now... but I think it's a good place. And I have the next chapter almost complete so unless I go through a major plot revamp, it should be up in the next week. (Don't kill me if it's not though, please?  
  
Zarbok- thanks for the review! The story is The Ruthless Mind, and it's under my co-writer's name; Sketty24. Yeah, I'm on a bit of a killing spree at the moment. Very good for anger management... (or not...)  
  
Shady777- sorry the bit about Sena getting out wasn't too clear. I was thinking that she had enough purchase to keep herself sort of dangling there, almost dancing on Jill's shoulders, and the explosion gave her the necessary momentum to get up. shrug ah well. Poor old James and that dude who ran off the cliff... but such is loife.  
  
Chapter 28  
  
The air was poison.  
  
That was the first thing Rosanna realized. The next things came fast. Somehow, there had been an earthquake or something, and she and Ian were alone. Also, there was a fire somewhere. It was unbearable hot and the smoke was choking her.  
  
It fought for a place in her lungs. She struggled to keep it out.  
  
Ian held onto her hand so tightly that the dolphin-shaped ring she wore dug into his fingers. They stumbled blindly together through the inferno of blazing foundations. The heat was incredible. The air burned her face. She could feel the skin on her legs begin to blister, and ran faster.  
  
"There has to be a way out. There has to be!"  
  
Lungs burning... body burning... air burning...  
  
Oxygen took flight from the fire. Breathing was treacherous. Ian spluttered and gagged, searching for air that was not there. Fire menaced his clothing, threatening to make him a human flame.  
  
Rosanna tripped on some rubble that was hidden by the heavy smoke, landing in a sprawling heap on the concrete. It was blisteringly hot. Through the blackness she could see tongues of fire leaping upwards, trying to scorch the clouds. It took all her strength to get to her feet, even with Ian pulling her up.  
  
It was then, by complete chance, that Rosanna glimpsed the ladder. With flames sauntering nearer, she dragged Ian over to where she had seen it, fearing that it would have only been a mirage. Her foot came in contact painfully with a metal rung.  
  
It was an ungainly ladder, rusting and obviously not often used. It was ugly, but sturdy. Almost crying in relief as she choked, she reached for it and began climbing hurriedly.  
  
The metal of the ladder was scorching hot. She tried to touch it as little as possible, but the sobs from Ian below her as fire licked at his feet told her she couldn't afford to waste time. Sweat poured off her and made the rungs slippery.  
  
"Gnaaaargh!"  
  
She stopped and turned. Ian's face was dark with lack of oxygen and every movement was heavily labored. His clothing was catching fire. Rosanna dug her fingers into his hand, and attempted to drag him up past her so he could get some air and climb quickly to the top.  
  
He clawed at her, bitten fingernails carving deep grooves into the smooth skin of her forearms. Smoke billowed into Rosanna's eyes, and she could only just see him. Sweat, blood and heat made it impossible to hold on, and he pulled his arms from her grip. Ian gave a low hiss of triumph, and pulled at his burning clothing. Momentum and gravity combined their will and pulled him decisively into the fire. Rosanna screamed, and stood on the ladder, not sure of what to do.  
  
The flames nipped her heels, and she knew she had tarried long enough. Tears trailed unashamedly down her face and she choked over and over again on the smoke as she hauled herself upwards.  
  
She came out on the streets. They were in disarray, creaking with melting tar. Mr. Beasley the geography teacher ran past, completely oblivious to her presence. Rosanna knew the state of the ground below the seemingly solid road, and had to get off the treacherous streets. But where to go? The sewers spanned for miles!  
  
She shrugged bitterly and ran in the direction of the bank, clutching her bleeding and scorched arms to her, intending to hide in the forest.  
  
-----  
  
Barry shook his head. A quick, frenzied search of the immediate area showed it to be devoid of convenient escape holes. "There's only one thing for it," he muttered to the still dazed Chris, "we'll have to go back to stumbling blindly in the sewers, smoke, flame and all."  
  
"There'll be something close by," Claire declared. "After all we've been through, there has to be something that will help us get out."  
  
Rebecca nodded tiredly, eyes watering. "Just keep searching... there'll be something. I know it..."  
  
The two men shared a look, and then limped and stumbled towards the flickering light down the tunnel.  
  
Sweat beaded on them as they approached the raging flame. They crawled on their stomachs, keeping low to avoid as much smoke as possible. "This way," Rebecca hissed, and she scuttled over a large pipe that went over the nauseating sewerage.  
  
Chris groaned but followed, having little choice. Barry allowed himself to pat the younger man on the shoulder before pushing Chris ahead of him. The fire hadn't seemed to have reached the other side of the sewerage. "Good thinking, Rebecca," Barry murmured, smiling wanly at her. Despite the terror of their situation, Rebecca blushed and felt extremely proud. She had helped in their hour of need.  
  
------  
  
Victoria snarled. Things were going well... then the wretch had decided to fight back. Victoria was a sore loser. She hadn't lived for a hundred and fifty years in the sewers to be thwarted by one impudent male who didn't know his place. The 'girl' lunged at him, and received a sharp blow to the jaw.  
  
She staggered slightly. He was fast, damn fast, faster than her. And strong too. But not as strong as her, he had less than half her strength. If he kept avoiding her more powerful attacks, well, that wouldn't be a problem. But if she could hit him once, just once, he would be permanently out of action.  
  
They were covered in each other's blood. Brilliant bruises bloomed and spread. Cuts formed and healed instantly. It was endless torment. The healing processes for Victoria were beginning to backfire. There were too many cuts and not enough time to heal them all.  
  
All she needed was an opening. Break his neck, bite him, she didn't have a preference.  
  
They were evenly matched. One faster, one stronger, but eventually physical things cancelled each other out. It came down to luck and cunning. Victoria's pale brow knitted in concentration. She slapped Wesker more out of irritation than anything else. His shades slipped to the forest floor.  
  
His cat-like red eyes flared. Victoria smirked at him sardonically, her own eyes glowing eerily. Wesker managed a sneer of his own, bringing his trusty desert eagle in front of him. The smile quickly disappeared from Victoria's face.  
  
The bullet buried deep into her shoulder. Several things cracked and burst. Blood dripped and ran free. Victoria blanched a bone-white.  
  
She began to be aware of things she had never known before. Memories ran freely through her, and she didn't think they were her own. She remembered going to Tokyo Disneyland as a seven year old boy, remembered becoming bankrupt and living on the streets, and remembered running through the streets of Raccoon City trying to survive.  
  
These were not her memories.  
  
These were the memories her virus had accumulated.  
  
She dug into the mind from Raccoon City as Wesker loomed over her. She saw him as a captain, as a comrade and as a traitor, but always intimidating.  
  
"Traitor..." she hissed at him. The hand that was about to choke her stopped an inch from her throat. A slight glint of confusion sparked in his eyes. "You betrayed us to umbrella, killed almost all of STARS in the mansion..."  
  
"How do you know that?" he asked emotionlessly.  
  
"Wesker, where's Chris?" she replied, a perfect imitation of Jill's voice, repeating the words the cherry-headed woman had said after first entering that mansion.  
  
"Jill Valentine told you."  
  
"In a way," she said noncommittally. Then she smiled. "It would seem I have everyone's memories, everyone who has the virus."  
  
She marveled at the fact she had never known before, never cared to find out.  
  
"The Jill Valentine must be a 'vampire'."  
  
Victoria smiled, glancing over his shoulder. "So it would appear. Speak of the devil herself."  
  
Wesker straightened and turned. Jill stood some distance away in the trees. Wesker saw her clearly with his enhanced 'fuzzy' vision.  
  
Victoria made the most of his distraction, digging after the bullet in her shoulder with strong fingernails and stifling her gasps of pain. Blood oozed over her hands, but she pulled the offending article out. Automatic healing took over properly, joining broken arteries and ribs.  
  
The other vampiress watched him calculatingly. She took a few quick steps forward. Wesker shot at her. From this distance, there was no way he could miss.  
  
----  
  
PLEASE REVIEW! 


	29. Truce?

An update! And maybe the story will have something that will make you groan, I know not. But the end approaches. We might have only one chapter after this to go, which I guess would make it neat as far as chapter numbers go.  
  
Shady:: thanks for the review! I'm glad you liked the fiery bit, I spent a lot of time trying to write it, so it's really great that you picked it up! The Ashford fic I'm planning on doing might not seem like it's Ashford based when I begin... but... well, won't say no more! I couldn't resist but to put something about a slime monster in! I hope you don't mind too much!  
  
Victoria: thanks for your support, Veronica! Don't worry, I'll use all my influence to get you an at least part time job here... once the muse gives Sych some good ideas....  
  
Sych: I don't need a muse to give me ideas! I am imaginatively gifted!  
  
Victoria: [withering look] look at the name you gave me! It's my cousin's spelt horribly wrong!  
  
Zarbok:: thanks for reviewing! Unfortunately I'm only coming back for a few chapters... so I hope this one is just as good. Not as much action, sadly. In fact, I think hardly any action at all :O But who knows... there might be another story of mine up soon...  
  
Unit Fox hound:: Lol, thinking as my very dodgy self, not in this story! If you're talking about unrestrained violence... again, maybe later. Thankies for the review!  
  
Guest1234567890:: I'm not entirely sure what you're talking about, but SWEET! Thanks for your review!  
  
Chapter 29  
  
It should have been the end of the three virus-carriers. If a metal canister had been dropped, the resulting spark would have ignited on the tension to form an explosion bigger than Krakatoa.  
  
The bullet did blow away some chunks of skin, but it wasn't enough to kill the vampress. Wesker cursed inwardly. Surely, I can't have missed from this distance!  
  
"Seems we have some sort of stand-off," Victoria commented, digging into the open wound on her shoulder. Her strong fingernails went past the clotting blood and pulled out the bullet shells, letting them drop into her palm. They were warmed by her blood.  
  
"So it would seem," Wesker replied through gritted teeth.  
  
The two vampires regarded each other. Not a hint of emotion was given on either side. Standing, Victoria wondered if Jill would be an ally against Wesker, thinking to the strength of emotions in her memories. There was hate there, definitely, repulsion and betrayal.  
  
Jill took some small, confident steps into the clearing. The expectant, charged silence continued.  
  
Victoria stared at the glowing mineshaft, reminded of the night 150 years ago when she fell into a different one. The look on her brother's face... his tapered fingers reaching after her...  
  
She shouldn't have been surprised when Jill barreled into her stomach. After all, the vampire knew for certain that Victoria was the queen of their particular virus, and you always go for the strongest first. Jill had seen an advantage, and went for it.  
  
It was like being tackled in a heated rugby game. The older, more powerful vampress was effectively squashed by the other. Jill released her captive, and said her first words to them.  
  
"Give me back my memories."  
  
"What?" Victoria looked at her strangely, picking herself up, again.  
  
"I can't remember anything clearly. It's all... disorientating. Like I have multiple personalities or something."  
  
Can you steal memories?  
  
"You said before that you had memories from us, from me," Jill continued in a low hiss. "I want mine back, so I know who I am."  
  
Victoria took a sweeping glance of the clearing, taking in Wesker's nonchalant lean against a tree. She could tell all his wounds were healed already. If the fighting began again, she was back to square one. His glowing eyes were utterly unreadable.  
  
Well, might as well try to make her remember. Victoria was loathe to close her eyes, and leave herself open to take, so instead she stared into the leafy treetops, focusing on both the woman before her and the memories she had accessed before. She doubted it would work, but maybe if she tried hard enough, the other vampire would be tricked into thinking it had worked and remembering on her own accord.  
  
Like voodoo... or reverse-psychology... or something like that.  
  
She lived through every minute of Jill Valentine's life in a high-speed moment, standing there at night gazing into the leaves. She sensed rather than saw the first day at school, the first joke, terror and happiness and despair.  
  
Jill was staring into the sky. She thought she felt something stirring, a dawning recognition. She gazed briefly at the face of the girl, as poker as Wesker's. Perhaps it was Wesker who helped her remember, or perhaps a transfer of memories did occur, or maybe it was all in her mind to begin with, but parts of her began to sweep back.  
  
The troubled voice that had grown fainter began to override the beast. And in one moment of dubious clarity, Jill knew she had to find her friends. If they were stuck in the flames, she would get them out. They would need her, but more than that, he would expect her to.  
  
A sharp push sent Victoria to the ground again, and Jill ran off into the night.  
  
Wesker didn't bother to try to chase her, though he knew he'd probably regret it later. He and his enemy both felt somehow linked by the experience, even if she was a pompous, malicious eternally-sixteen hussy.  
  
The thoroughly beaten-up and still bleeding Victoria put on her most winning smile and looked up at him. "Can we have a truce?"  
  
----  
  
Claire stumbled in her brother's wake. The smell of the sewers had no choking affect on her anymore. The smoke, however, did. But here, they were far away from the fire, separated by a river of excretion.  
  
Almost ironic. Or at least symbolic.  
  
The torch light stayed steady. Barry, aching as any of them, held it confidently. Claire marveled at how he had shrugged off his injuries except for a slight grimace every so often. It was like he was the world's most stereo-typical butch male, nothing could slow him up or hurt him for long. Barry was indeed a caring grizzly bear.  
  
Out of the corner of her eye, glinting in the torchlight, there was something white.  
  
"Chris, look!" she pointed to the grimy wall.  
  
Cutting through the moss and dirt that grew on it, there was a solid line of white topped with a hastily drawn triangle.  
  
"It's one of Rosanna's arrows," her brother hissed.  
  
They called the other two. Rebecca's eyes shined with optimism, Barry's with determination.  
  
A couple of steps down the dank passageway in the opposite direction of the arrow and they found another.  
  
"It can lead us back to the start," Rebecca hissed, voicing the thoughts on everyone's minds.  
  
Like birds they flew through the sewers, following Rosanna's signs.  
  
Each and every one of the four traced their earlier footsteps with more caution than you'd normally expect. But these were no dreamers; they knew nature didn't respect the laws of romance novels. They tip-toed silently through the passages, feeling waves of dread that their escape would be stolen from them, and expecting to feel teeth at their necks with an almost religious conviction.  
  
"Wait," Barry said quietly.  
  
"What?" Claire asked distractedly, convinced that an unmentionable slime creature was only inches behind her.  
  
No sudden moves, that's the trick. Fast movement startles those slime monsters.  
  
"What's our cover story?" Barry asked, "the embarrassingly good lie that avoids us from getting murder and arson put to our names?"  
  
Chris sighed. "Let's stick to 'search gone horribly wrong', and give no more details. We got separated at some point, true, and we don't know exactly what happened to the others, also slightly true."  
  
I wonder if the slime guy is more likely to go for Chris. I mean, look at him, he looks more appetizing than I do. Not that he's fat or anything, probably just oozes 'delicious' to sewer-dwelling radioactive balls of goo...  
  
Barry nodded to show he understood, and then gestured with a wince to keep going. His shoulder was obviously beginning to stiffen up. The group walked side by side, as if doing emu parade.  
  
Do slime monsters even exist?  
  
It would be impossible to guess what they were thinking as the walked through those last terrifying steps to salvation. Except maybe for Claire, who may have been pondering the existence of slimy creatures with a taste for human flesh.  
  
The grating, a prison-bar like covering to the jail of the sewers, stood like an old friend to welcome them back to the land of above ground. Each slipped back above ground, beginning to shake uncontrollably as the events of the night began to sink in.  
  
"Look," Rebecca called softly.  
  
Sitting on the edge of the pond, looking into its unfathomable depths, was the ragged form of Rosanna. When they called to her, her only reaction was to blink.  
  
Gently and slowly, Claire put a hand on her shoulder. The younger girl turned her head with even more slowness. It was obvious from the wet eyes and glistening tear tracks on her dirty face that she was crying.  
  
"Ian," she whispered weakly. It was all that was needed.  
  
Claire, not usually noted for her tact or motherly tendencies, swept her into a hug. Rebecca joined on the other side, and soon Barry and Chris formed, a small huddle protecting a young girl from the inevitability of nature.  
  
"I don't want to stay here," Rosanna said, more strongly. The group tensed slightly, still a strange growth on the side of the lake. "You mentioned something about a resistance against the viral companies responsible for things like this. I want to join."  
  
"You're young, and it's dangerous work."  
  
"This night was like twenty years for me. That would make me older than you."  
  
"What about your family, and friends?" Barry asked. His voice was a soft bass that seemed like ripples in the dark night.  
  
"My friends are basically all dead or missing, and after tonight no amount of family or love will be able to console me. I..." she searched for the words, wanting to sound wise and brave. "I need to fight the companies like Umbrella. For Celia, and little girls like her."  
  
Chris knew the decision fell onto him. How could it not? Barry might be stronger and wiser, but Chris was the leader (even if it was delegated to him when the others were too lazy or the decision too tough). There were some substantial wrinkles to be smoothed out, but he thought that Rosanna should join them.  
  
The main reason was, even if her grasp of language was not good enough to describe it exactly, Rosanna felt exactly the same way as he did. And after that, there was no going back. Normalcy didn't apply.  
  
----  
  
PLEASE REVIEW!!!! Should Victoria get her truce???? atmospheric music plays 


	30. Water

I am so sorry this took so long to get up! I accidentally deleted the file and replaced it with an older one by mistake and omigod- but at least it's here now. Sorry about the wait. And thank you to everyone who has read or reviewed my story. I will be beginning another one soon... and yes, it will be done faster than this.

BTW, thanks Shady, Claire's thoughts were supposed to be italicised in the last chapter but evidently didn't come through in the final upload (long suffering sigh)

AND yes, I know this is a cheesy ending and I'm in no way happy with it. If i get inspired I might rewrite the chapter at some point. But now I've technically finished this story, i can get moving on the next one, yo.

**IF EVER YOU HAVE READ/REVIEWED, BE YOU BLESSED! YOU MADE ONE AUTHOR VERY HAPPY INDEED!!!!**

Chapter 30:

"What would you tell your parents?"

Rosanna swung her head slowly to look at him, and thought carefully. "I have an idea... but I'm going to need a bit of help... and also I think you should go over it with me. So you can tell me what you think."

Barry conceded, "Well, let's worry about it tomorrow. For the moment, let's see if we can help any of the townsfolk."

Chris nodded. "Okay guys, only a couple more hours."

They all stood heavily. In this simple movement grief seemed to drift like snowflakes to the ground- not forgotten, just stored until they had time to attend to it. Claire looked back across the pond to the rusting grating. It didn't look as threatening as she thought it would've... she fancied it looked almost lonely.

A part of her worried about how she would be plagued by nightmares from this night for a long, long time. Another part told her she should have those nightmares with pride and never forget the people who lost their lives here. As someone had said, a person only ever existed if they are remembered. It was important to remember.

Rebecca gasped. Immediately STARS swiveled round. A pale purple glow loomed out of the darkness at the forest edge. It wasn't hard to realize what those eyes belonged to. The universal thought was _/Not now, not after all we've been through! /_

The vampire didn't run at them, like they had expected. It lurked in the gloom, with small steps taking it closer to them. Gradually they could discern its shape and features. It was Jill.

No one knew how to react. Was this a joyful occasion, or was it going to be one of the most somber? Chris in particular had many thoughts rushing through his fevered mind. It was he who first spoke.

"Jill?" his voice cracked with a mixture of hope and disbelief.

The vampire smiled. She walked towards the group, stopping three meters away. Her movements were odd –smooth and slow. They didn't seem real.

"What are you doing here?"

Jill looked at the faces of the people who thought- or knew- her to be Ben's murderess. She counted every face, glad to see her friends, and saw some holes.

"Where're Ian and James?" she asked.

"Both dead," replied Barry lowly. "Where's Sena?"

Rosanna's head jerked up. She watched the other woman's face searchingly. "I don't know... but I think she's alive... Sena was half-out of the sewers when the explosion happened."

"We have to find her," Rosanna said instantly.

"What about Wesker?" Claire asked. "Won't he be with her?"

Jill didn't answer.

_**(Scene Change: My normal chapter breaks aren't showing up, GAH!)**_

Victoria tapped Wesker on the shoulder. She was knocked on her bum again as he automatically hit her in the face. It was her fault, she should've known he wouldn't trust her straight away, but she thought he wasn't even trying.

He turned to see the girl on the ground, one hand raised to a heavily bleeding nose. He offered no apology, just a "What?"

"I herb sobthink thad you bighd wan oo ear."

His face remained expressionless. "What was that?"

Victoria waited a couple of seconds until the bleeding stopped. "I heard something that you might want to hear."

"Oh?"

"Jill has gone to the STARS –who are /still/ alive- and they told her that Ian and James are dead."

Two pieces of bad news in one sentence. Wesker creased his brow. He'd just been beginning to like his cousin- from afar. "You had better not be lying..."

"No! I'm not. I could access it as soon as it became a memory..."

"Ah yes, leading to the theory of the shortest time span, the time it takes for the present to become the past, I assume?"

She didn't answer. But that's fine; he wasn't going to listen to her even if she did.

"Well," he sighed. "I guess I should go find my nieces then."

_**(Yet another scene change: Damn quickedit)**_

"What happened to Ben?" Rebecca asked quietly.

Everyone held their breath and watched Jill. It was still the same old Jill, even with glowing eyes that contrasted sharply and almost clashed with her hair and pale skin. She avoided their gaze and stared at the dark water, searching for an answer that wasn't a lie. She couldn't answer.

"Jill?" Chris watched her anxiously, wanting her to have some perfectly acceptable explanation.

She turned her face away from them.

Some worst fears were confirmed.

"If," Barry began. He stopped, and then tried again. "If you admit that you... killed... Ben, how could you dare to come back? What do you want?"

"I couldn't control myself then!" she cried. "The virus was like some sort of beast, all it wanted was blood. It was like... I was drugged, or really drunk, and all the time I was either angry or emotionless. It was all calculating."

The faces watching her were made stony with horror.

"What's changed?"

_**(And, yes, again)**_

A rough push woke the sleeping girl. She kept her eyes closed as a dull ache set in through a tired body. She was tugged at again.

"Wake up."

It took a fair bit of strength to open those incredibly heavy eyelids. Sena gazed blearily into her cousin's face. He didn't look angry, he almost looked relieved. He pulled her up by one hand.

'What's going on?" she asked.

He didn't reply. She wanted to ask again, but wisely bit her tongue. Then she saw the other girl with him. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up when she realized what the girl was.

Eventually Sena couldn't hold her tongue any longer. She recognized the route they were taking as a way to her house. "Uncle Al, what's going on? Where's Dad?"

Wesker turned to face her. As usual, he gave nothing away. "Sena, James is dead."

"Such a pity," Victoria interjected. Wesker sent her spiraling to the ground with yet another bleeding nose.

Sena merely stared at the man in horror. _/You're... you're not serious? You _/can't/ _be serious. /_ Despite the protesting of her heart, she knew it was true. Her father wasn't particularly fit, but if something happened he would be the most hopeless.

"So what happens now?" her voice was leaden and heavy with repressed tears.

"We go get your sister." Wesker gave himself the liberty of giving the distraught girl a brief hug, and then pulled away just as quickly. "And then I'll take care of you. I'll take you to your mother."

"What about everything here?"

Wesker –with Victoria in tow- was already walking away. "I'll take care of it."

_**(jees, another one? How many of these things do I use???)**_

"I know who I am now," Jill said heatedly. She looked pleadingly into the faces of her former friends. "And I know... what I am."

"And what are you?" asked Chris, barely breathing.

The vampress looked into his eyes, and then into every other watching pair. Finally, like Claire had before, she let her eyes drift to the grating to hell and settle on the waters of the lake.

"I know there will be a lot of work before you trust me again... if you ever will. And I know things will be different now." She sighed, a low musical breath of air that danced on the scorched wind. "But I _/am/_ a member of STARS."

"And," she said simply, "even if it isn't enough, my name /_is_/ Jill Valentine."

She was right, it wasn't enough. But maybe, just maybe, it would do.

_**(Last one. This is REALLY annoying)**_

The obsidian waters absorbed this new progression in history, as the always had an always would. It had seen the first child go missing, and now it had seen the first child come out. It had seen many terrible things in the space of time and each had been recorded- a drop of blood in depthless waters.

Reflecting the stars and collecting tears, the mirror flickered. And for a time, it was still.

**(Fin)**


End file.
